Ianto Jones Leader of the Rifts
by tstul006
Summary: This is the sequel to my other fic 'Ianto Jones Child of the Rift' If you haven't read that read it first or you'll be super confused.
1. Chapter 1

**AN :Okay, here is the first chapter to the sequel of Ianto Jones Child of the Rift. I hope everyone likes it. I would like to thank Taamar who decided to stay on my little planet with me despite my crazy. She is such a blessing to me. I can't wait to hear what you all think about it so remember to review.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.**

**Rating: MA**

**Warning: implied non-con, Slash, mentions of prostitution, and probably 20 other things that I am forgetting about.**

**Reading notes: This story is set primarily in Ianto's third life, but with numerous flashbacks to his second. For the sake of clarity, flashbacks will be in italics. **

**_The planet with two suns. 4982 The Sea_**

_Ianto felt safe within the white light. The light cradled him like a mother: healing him, strengthening him. He felt the energy flow though his veins until his skin seemed to vibrate. He could happily spend eternity wrapped in this embrace, but all good things must come to an end. The light began to recede from his vision, clearing to blue sky. Ianto had only a moment to realize that he was hovering over a deep blue sea before he plummeted into its choppy waters. _

_He tried not to panic as he attempted to keep his head above the water. He sucked in breath after breath, truly amazed that he could breathe, amazed that he was actually alive. He noticed immediately how much stronger he was as he began to swim against the waves. In the distance he could see an island overgrown with bright green vegetation, and he swam toward it. _

_Ianto wanted to cry with relief when he reached the shore. He finally took in the sky above him. There was the sun, low on the horizon and seemingly rising, but Ianto knew that it had been full daylight for quite some time. He turned his head to look behind him. High in the sky was another sun. Two suns. Not Earth. No Jack. Fuck. _

_"Well, Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," Ianto whispered to himself._

**Earth 1852 Somewhere in America.**

Ianto let out a little squeal and fell to his knees. The white light was gone and had been replaced with a dark night. The Welshman had to admit that it was a lot better than when he appeared after his first death, but his first death was a lot less painful than his second death, so he supposed it averaged out. He shook his head and tried not to think about it.

He got to his feet and looked up into the night sky and was relieved to see the familiar constellations. He was on Earth, no doubt about that. He wept with joy. God, after twenty years in space he didn't want to ever get on a spaceship again, or another alien planet, for that matter. Yep, Ianto Jones was going to make a point to keep his feet on the surface of Earth.

"You're the man," Ianto heard a familiar voice say. In French. Ianto looked back down and his eyes met a welcome familiar face: Adrian. He was naked, but so was Ianto. No need for modesty between them, anyway.

"Is that a saying already?" Ianto asked in French. He was going to have to teach the man English.

"Someone killed me." Adrian sobbed, dropping to his knees, "I died, I felt the air leave me. And then there was light. The light was surrounding me,"

Ianto fell into the role of a comforting friend and knelt in front of Adrian. "Yes, that happened, but you are safe now. Never again will you be forced to let anyone touch you."

"Is this heaven?"

"Nope, if I remember my conversation with you correctly this is Nevada, or will be Nevada. Oh, we're going to have to run from Native Americans, but don't worry, it'll be fun. I remember that." Ianto explained, getting up off the ground and pulling Adrian with him.

Adrian gave him a look of pure confusion. Ianto laughed, remembering how Iden's rambling had irritated him. And now he was doing it! He wondered if it was the effect of having far too many memories in one's brain; he could remember Jack doing the same thing. _Jack._ What year had he come back? What year was it now? Was Jack out in the world somewhere right now? Ianto pushed the thoughts aside for more practical matters.

"Okay, let's go find some clothes, and then we will sit down and I will explain the whole thing to you. Or, well, some of it. I can't tell you all of it, where's the adventure in that?"

Adrian gave a small smile but didn't speak.

Ianto looked around them and caught site of a glow in the distance, possibly a bonfire. "I think we may be able to get some clothing if we head that way. It won't be like going to a Dunelm Mill but it'll do." He grabbed Adrian's hand and they began to walk towards the glow.

Next thing Ianto knew they were running from the Native Americans. He couldn't think of a better way to start this life than running at the side of a man he knew he could trust. When they knew they were safe they fell to the ground laughing as they put on their stolen clothes.

**Earth 1904 Cardiff**

"Rift leader," Adrian smiled, opening the door to Ianto's brand new office. The Frenchman's English was fluent now, but his accent had remained, an odd amalgam of Welsh and American with the obvious influence of his mother tongue.

Ianto grinned, "No need to be formal, just, you know, understand that I'm in charge. And be reasonably polite when anyone else is looking."

Adrian gave Ianto a small salute, then set a bottle of scotch on the desk. "Yes, sir."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "Sit down."

"Oh, making commands already, I see" Adrian said, sitting down.

"Yep" Ianto said popping the p.

"I don't think I could lead others." Adrian replied simply.

"Of course not," Ianto deadpanned.

Adrian gave him a look that said he wasn't amused. "Anyway," Adrian said slowly as Ianto began to smile, "I've been looking in to that possible prostitution ring down by the bay and we've discovered that it isn't one. Everyone who goes there is a consenting adult, and no money is exchanged."

"Ah, I see," Ianto replied peering at the bottle of scotch Adrian had given him. He wasn't all that surprised that Adrian seemed to have and obsession with preventing prostitution, given his unique history.

"Harkness goes there."

Ianto looked up, interest piqued. Of course Jack went there. "What kind of place is this again?"

"Like a bathhouse without the bath. Anonymous sex. Peter Gibbs went in. The rooms are small and dark, said he couldn't make out the other man's face."

"Interesting," Ianto mused.

"I know which days Harkness is there, I know which room he goes in. You could go; he wouldn't be able to see your face."

Ianto narrowed his eyes. "You've been sitting on this information for a while haven't you?"

Adrian smirked. "A bit of a congratulations gift."

"Oh, I love you," Ianto smiled. Getting up and coming around the desk, he pulled Adrian up and hugged him close. "You really are the world's best mate."

"Yeah, yeah, you better go. He'll be in the third room on the right." Adrian struggled to say through Ianto's bear hug.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto took a deep breath before opening the third door on the right. Jack was in there. His Jack. It had been so long since he had felt the man's touch, and he didn't want to wait a moment longer. With trembling hands he opened the door and was greeted with the smell of Jack's pheromones. Ianto took a deep breath, feeling desire build in himself already.

"You smell great." Ianto said, closing the door behind him making the room that much darker.

"You sound great," Jack's voice came. Ianto had to hold back a sob; maybe this was a bad idea. The body on the bed got off it and walked towards Ianto. "Is this your first time?"

Ianto rolled his eyes. "No."

"Good, let's get these clothes off then" Jack said smoothly, reaching out to caress Ianto's face. A rush of arousal went through Ianto, the spark that was so like the recognition of another Child, but not. He had forgotten how intense it could be.

"Of course," he agreed, undressing as quickly as he could, eager for the touch of Jack's bare skin on his own. "Did you want to top or bottom?" he asked running a hand along Jack bare flank.

"I hope to do both," Jack whispered, pulling the Ianto closer. Finally their lips found each other. Ianto prayed he could get through this without crying. He'd cried the last time, too. Ianto felt himself being pulled toward the bed in the room. Jack's hands were exploring him as if trying to see him just by touch, and Ianto couldn't help the small whimper that came to him during the bittersweet moment.

"I'm a very gentle lover," Jack said in a reassuring tone, misinterpreting Ianto's whimper.

"I could tell," Ianto said bringing his hand to Jack's face and nearly laughing out loud when he felt the sideburns there. His bit his lip, glad Jack couldn't see him in the darkness.

Jack pulled up off the bed and Ianto admired his form as he reached to a side table and came back with a jar of oil. Urgh. Ianto would have given anything for some silicone lube.

"You mind if I top first?" Jack asked, getting up onto the bed.

"Be my guest," Ianto replied, needing to feel Jack moving inside him.

Jack didn't waste any time coating Ianto's entrance in oil and then pressing a finger in. "That feels a bit tight, you sure this isn't your first time?"

"Absolutely sure, it's just been awhile," Ianto whispered.

"How long," Jack asked adding another finger.

Ianto let out a moan and pressed back against Jack's hand. "With a man or in general?"

"With a man."

"Hmm… fifty years,"

Jack laughed. "Fine, no need to lie." He added yet another finger. Ianto bucked his hips and let out gasp of pleasure when Jack hit his prostate. "Did that feel good?" Jack teased.

Ianto smiled. He missed this man so much.

"Are you ready?" Jack asked.

"Please," Ianto pleaded. He could practically see the immortal's grin. Jack's body hovered above him, and he wrapped his legs around Jack's waist reaching under himself to line Jack up with his entrance. Jack began to press forward slowly.

Ianto felt tears sting his eyes as Jack leaned down and pressed their lips together. The Welshman hoped this night of happiness would be worth the depression that would come afterward.

Jack began to thrust slowly; Ianto was in heaven hearing his long-lost lover moan in pleasure. "You're amazing," Jack breathed.

"So are you," Ianto moaned.

"Oh, I'm just getting started," Jack growled speeding up his thrusts. Ianto knew it was going to be over far too soon.

"I'm not going to last long," Ianto gasped, pulling Jack back into a deep kiss.

"It's okay, just let go. I'll come with you," Jack urged pulling away from the kiss slightly.

"Promise," Ianto whimpered as his body started to tremble.

"Yes," Jack moaned.

Ianto came with a shout, only barely managing to keep himself from crying out Jack's name. Jack was true to his word and came seconds later.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto open the door to Adrian's room and walked over to the bed. It was early morning so the sun was coming in through the windows slightly. Adrian was alone in the bed, as always. Ianto got under the blanket and laid his head on his best friend's shoulder.

"How did it go?" Adrian asked, his eyes remaining closed.

"It was… intense," Ianto said. "But wonderful. Thank you for arranging it."

"You're welcome," Adrian replied with a yawn.

Ianto started to cry. "It was so hard to leave. So hard to make it just sex. It wasn't to me, you know. I miss him. I miss everything about him."

"I'm sorry," Adrian said, becoming alert, as he recognized Ianto's distress. He wrapped his arms around Ianto and pulled him into a close embrace.

"It's life," Ianto sobbed raggedly.

TW—TW-TW

"Her name is Joy, she's beautiful." Anna, the only current seeker for Cardiff Rift, was informing Ianto of a Rift Child she had just discovered.

Ianto felt his heart break. "Her last name."

"Mathers."

"Oh," Ianto replied. Maybe it wasn't Joy Parker. "Follow her, but I don't want her trained or even spoken to until she marries and I am told her married name."

"Is it because she is female?" Anna huffed.

Ianto sighed. "Yes of course. Didn't you know that women can't properly understand things until they are married?" He deadpanned.

Anna looked shocked, then smiled, realizing he wasn't serious. "You're a right jerk sometimes."

"I know, it's a gift I have." he smiled.

Anna sat down in the chair across from Ianto's desk. "Really though, why do we need to wait on telling Joy?"

"If she turns out to be Joy Parker than she needs to go on not knowing. It's important for our future."

"Oh, well that was helpful," Anna quipped, rolling her eyes.

"I have a gift for that as well," Ianto smiled.

"I would like to hear more about your gifts," Anna said softly, her eyes looking down as if she was nervous. It wasn't like the normally out spoken fortieth century firecracker. Perhaps the time period was rubbing off on her.

"Well it would take a while."

"I could cook us a meal."

Ianto understood now. Anna wanted to further their relationship. "Oh, okay, sure," Ianto stammered. "but…"

"Jones, I'm not stupid, I know it won't be anything more than what it will be."

Ianto nodded. He liked Anna.

"Okay, dinner then." Ianto nodded. Anna smiled and got up from her chair.

"Tonight, seven. Don't be late," she demanded as she walked out of the office. Ianto shook his head at her.

Adrian had told him last year that the girl fancied him. Ianto had rolled his eyes, but Adrian had been right. It amazed him how his best friend could be so good at recognizing others romantic feelings yet have none of his own.

He sighed another day nearly done. Another day closer to Jack. 105 years to go.

**_The planet with two suns. 4982 Nicandro Village._**

_Ianto wasn't sure how long he had been on this god forsaken planet. All he wanted was his second death. When he had plunged into the sea of this never sleeping planet he had wanted to growl in frustration; he had expected to end up in the 1800's on Earth but he hadn't. He was here, a slave to race of humanoids with lithe limbs and attenuated bodies. _

_Ianto had figured out on his second day that he was something of a house pet to the man he was forced to lie beside on a bed made of some sort of reptile skin and stuffed with dried grass. Ianto felt like a pet most of the time. An abused pet, but a pet. _

_Kare was the man's name. Ianto felt his captor stir beside him and tried to stay still, hoping he would be thought to be sleeping, and thus left alone. It had happened in the past, but Kare was unpredictable._

_"Wake," Kare yelled. Apparently today wasn't one of those days. Ianto turned his head to look at the creature. The alien smiled a brittle smile that turned Ianto's stomach. "Suck," Kare said slowly. _

_Kare spoke in the local Nicandro language. It was one that Ianto understood, but Kare, along with all the others in the village, thought the Rift Children too stupid to understand anything beyond one word commands. Ianto hadn't let on that he understood the language, but he word 'suck' had been established on Ianto's third day, when the alien had forced his massive cock into Ianto's mouth. Ianto had bitten down, and Kare had had all of Ianto's teeth pulled. They grew back, of course, but it hurt like hell. Ianto never bit again._

_Ianto reluctantly crawled down the reptile mattress and bent to take the man into his mouth. He closed his eyes and imagined that it was Jack lying before him instead of Kare. Thoughts of Jack made it almost bearable. _

_"Kare, the chief needs to see you," interrupted a feminine voice from just outside the tent._

_Kare let out a sigh and got up off the bed pushing Ianto out of the way in the process as if he were discarding an object. "Stay," he commanded. Ianto crawled back onto the bed and closed his eyes. He hoped Kare would be gone for a while. _


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Chapter 2. Already, I know. Get your tissues out again. (sorry)

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Spoilers: Immortal Sins

Rating: MA

Warnings: Implied Sexual situations. Death. Suicide. Implied Torture.

Reading Notes: As a reminder Ianto's second life is in italics.

**_The planet with two suns, Nicandro Village, 4982_**

_Ianto sat next to Sabina, his fellow slave and Rift Child. They were cooking, inasmuch as it was possible to cook with the low level of technology available in the village. That meant an open fire. Ianto was struck again with the indignity of being held captive by a race that hadn't even managed to invent a stove, yet they thought HIM lacking in intellect. _

_"So anything new with you?" Sabina asked kneading some dough against a flat rock._

_"Oh, you know, same ol' same ol'," Ianto smiled from his place by the fire. He was trying to get it to stay lit. They always tried to keep their banter light, as if their situation were the most normal thing in the world, it helped them cope. No slaves here, just folks with normal lives. _

_"I'm pregnant," Sabina blurted. Ianto looked down at her in slight shock. So much for light banter. What would a child between a human and a Nicandro look like, anyway? He hoped it would have Sabina's brown skin and not the milky gray of a Nicandro. _

_"I'm sorry," Ianto said solemnly. _

_"What do you think they will do when they find out? I already love it, it's part of me I want to protect it." Sabina said, starting to cry. Ianto gave up on the fire and came to sit beside his only friend within the village._

_"Whatever it takes, we will make it through. We'll run. When there's a child involved I will stand up in defense. I will do all that is possible to keep you and that baby safe, Bina, I promise."_

_Kare came into view then, so Ianto rushed back to the fire. Thankfully, Kare didn't seem to notice that Ianto had left his post, he just walked up behind Ianto and patted his bare shoulder. "Good," he smiled, then walked away again. Ianto rolled his eyes at his captor's retreating figure. Just a fucking house pet._

**Earth, Cardiff, 1910**

Ianto sat in front of the Pierhead Building and looked over the bay. He'd caught a nice glimpse of Jack today, but as wonderful as it was to see him, it was a reminder to Ianto that it would be another ninety-nine years before he could truly be with the man again. He sighed. This wasn't fair at all. To add to his misery, Adrian had accepted a position in Massachusetts and would be leaving for America at the end of the month. Ianto allowed himself to indulge in self-pity for a moment before heading back home to Anna.

"Thought I'd find you moping here," Anna said, sitting down beside her husband.

"I'm not moping," Ianto pouted. He was, and he knew it.

"No, of course not, my dearest husband." Anna teased putting a gentle hand on Ianto's leg. They sat a moment in silence.

"Do you ever miss anyone, Anna?"

"Yes, my children. All the time." Anna sighed.

"Do you want any more?"

"Are you offering? I don't know, Jonesy. Taking care of you is hard enough."

Ianto smiled. "Oi!"

"Alright, Rift Leader, I'm heading home. You come along and we can practice how babies are made. See if that helps your mood."

"That does sound fun," Ianto admitted.

"I'll leave the hairbrush by the bed," Anna said with a wink.

Ianto grinned as he watched her walk away; he knew _exactly_ what she was suggesting with the hairbrush remark. And maybe a little spanking was just what he needed to distract him. Brilliant woman, Anna. He loved her dearly. He got to his feet and headed home to take her up on her offer.

First, though, he wanted to look around the entrance of Torchwood. He realized that it was dangerous, and perhaps a bit masochistic, but he didn't care. As Ianto passed under a bridge he saw a flash that heralded a relocated Rift Child coming through, and ran to the source. Standing in an alley was a little dark-haired girl Ianto knew well. She was crying. Ianto took off his coat and wrapped the girl in it, pulling her into his arms.

"Shh… It's okay, you're safe," Ianto whispered, "What's your name?" She didn't answer. He supposed he'd have to pick one. "How about Bethan? It's a good Welsh name. Knew one in school, pretty hair like yours. Smart too."

The girl stared at him silently. Ianto suppressed his urge to babble and took her home to Anna.

"Well, when we were discussing children this isn't what I expected," Anna smiled after she and Ianto had tucked the little girl into bed.

"I know her," Ianto explained. "She will be the rift leader of Cardiff. She'll change her name every few weeks and act like a child because it amuses her to do so, but she'll be a strong leader. "

"In Cardiff? That's your job," Anna pointed out. Ianto nodded.

"Are we going to retire in the future?"

Ianto didn't want to have this conversation. As much as he loved her, there were things he couldn't tell Anna. He hadn't been able to tell her that he hadn't met her in his first life. He also hadn't told her about Aria. "She's probably going to sleep for a while. Let's go to bed," Ianto smiled, avoiding the question altogether.

"Always avoiding the tough questions," Anna sighed, following her husband out of the little girl's new room and down the hall to the room that was theirs.

"And yet you still like to ask them," Ianto replied, closing the door behind his wife and beginning to undo his dress shirt.

Anna faced away from the Welshman as she pulled off her earrings. She set the small pearls on her vanity. "Maybe I am hoping one day you will go soft and let me in on your secrets."

Ianto grinned at his wife's back and then walked up behind her pulling her body against his chest. "I may be a lot of things, but soft is not one of them," he breathed against her ear.

Anna reached and pulled an ornate hair pin from her hair causing the long braid of her hair to fall. Anna's hair was one of her best features; it was soft and it matched the brown of her eyes. Ianto took a step back and started to undo the braid that he had done just that morning.

"I do want a child," Anna admitted. "I just didn't think you would want one. Seeing you with the little one tonight has changed my mind."

Ianto stopped his hands. He had expected Anna to think longer on the child issue. "Oh, so would that mean that you don't want to just practice tonight?"

Anna turned to lock eyes with her husband. "Yes, unless…"

"Let's see what happens," Ianto smiled.

TW-TW-TW

**Earth, Cardiff, 1911**

"Anna, you have to get up. Bethan needs you…I need you," Ianto pleaded with his grieving wife.

Anna barely moved in her bed. "Sometimes I can still feel him," she whispered, her voice raw and cracking. Ianto sat on the bed beside his wife and put a hand on her back.

"I would be nursing him right now if we were in the fortieth century instead of this barbaric place," she whimpered.

"I know," Ianto agreed.

Anna turned to look at him her face angry. "You don't know!"

Ianto took a deep breath, struggling to control his emotions. "I know that you are scaring Bethan. I know that you are pushing me away. I know that I lost him too, that I held his tiny body in my arms. That I dream about him. That I want to have him back. I know that you hurt more than you ever thought possible, and I do too, but I also know that life moves on, Anna. It has to, for us," tears were threatening.

Anna turned in her bed. "I want to be alone."

Ianto got up off the bed. "I am taking Bethan out for the day. I will be back. I love you Anna." She gave no response. Ianto walked out of the room and down the staircase. Bethan was waiting at the bottom step, her elbows on her knees and her chin resting in her hands. She looked up as Ianto approached.

"Is mum coming?" she asked hopefully.

Ianto was reminded of his childhood from the little girl's question. "No dear, she's still a bit ill."

"Uncle Parry says we don't get ill."

"Yes, well this is more of a sadness kind of ill. Not a sickness kind of ill."

Bethan seemed to accept that answer and stood up reaching for her adoptive father's hand. "We could buy her a gift. That helps me when I'm sad."

"Alright, that sounds like a great idea. Smart girl."

"I'm a bit sad too, Tad. Can I have a gift?"

Ianto nodded and grinned at the girl. "Oh I guess."

TW-TW-TW

Ianto entered the Victorian home with Bethan asleep in his arms. They'd had a nice day out, even catching a traveling show. Not the one Jack was in though, much to Ianto's disappointment. They had also picked up a nice vanity gift set for Anna. It came with a new brush, mirror, and hair pin, all sterling silver.

Ianto took the little girl to her room and tucked her into bed then traveled down the hall to his own room. He smiled at the door. One day this would be the entrance to Bethan's room and young Ianto would enter it, unaware of all the memories that the room would someday hold for him. Ianto sighed, not all of them were good ones.

He opened the door and was surprised to see the window opened. He looked over at the bed he shared with Anna. She wasn't in it, but there was a note lying on her pillow.

_ My dearest Ianto,_

_I know you will think that what I have done is selfish. But I must start anew. I can't risk this hurt again. Our little boy… Ianto Gareth Jones Jr., so small, so innocent. I see him when I look at you. His eyes matched yours; the little tufts of his hair the same as yours. It is too painful for me to bear any longer. So I have decided to start my third life. If the Rift is kind I will end up somewhere in the future, somewhere children don't die without reason. I will always love you. I will always cherish our time together. I am so sorry that I wasn't strong enough for you._

_Your loving wife,_

_Anna Jones_.

Ianto dropped the note onto the bed and looked towards the open window. He could now see the rope that was tied to the bottom of the heavy bed. He walked to the window and peered out. He could see his wife's beautiful hair flowing in the night wind. Her body hung limp.

TW-TW-TW

"None of this is your fault," Adrian stated, putting a hand on Ianto's shoulder as they watched the casket that would house Anna's body for a short period of time lower into the ground. Adrian had come back to Cardiff after receiving news of the death of Ianto and Anna's son. He had arrived the day after Anna had relocated herself.

"Not my fault? She chose to leave me. Everyone does. Do you know what all the people who leave have in common? Nothing. Except me. How can it not be my fault?" Ianto replied, his voice monotone.

"Well, I'll be staying around," Adrian stated. "I sense that Bethan doesn't care for me much, though."

Ianto smiled ruefully; that wouldn't change. He'd always thought it was jealousy over Jason, but clearly the antipathy ran deeper. "She's just upset. Losing two mothers in two years has to be tough on her."

"Well you'll just have to make her understand that she won't be losing her father," Adrian insisted.

Ianto nodded. "She won't be."

**Earth, New York, 1928**

"Ah… Little Italy," Ianto sighed, sniffing the air, "Smells just as bad as everywhere else in this city."

Adrian rolled his eyes. "You gonna be cranky this whole trip?"

"It's a possibility," Ianto deadpanned. They were following up on a rumor of a person who couldn't die. Word had it he was being kept in a nearby butcher shop and could be viewed for a small fee. Because of the possibility that it could be a Rift Child Ianto and Adrian were going to check it out.

"So how's your campaign going?" Adrian asked.

"Quite well, I've got Nevada, and France, along with Cardiff. Waiting on Massachusetts?"

Adrian rolled his eyes. "You have Massachusetts as long as you promise to find a new leader. Smith told me three years ago that this was a temporary thing. Three years is not temporary."

"First thing I'll do," Ianto promised.

"Then you have my vote, future Minister."

At the butcher shop Ianto let Adrian do all the talking. He gave the passwords that he had acquired and paid the fat shop owner.

"You are the first to arrive today, you will get a good show," The man said slowly in choppy English.

"Thank you," Ianto nodded as the man opened the door to the basement where the 'show' took place. Ianto already knew there was no Rift Child on the premises, he'd have felt it, but he had a terrible suspicion. He peered around the darkened room and found it confirmed: there, hanging from the ceiling, was Jack. Ianto ground his teeth together and forced his face to remain impassive until the fat butcher left them, closing the door behind him.

As soon as the door closed Ianto rushed to his lover, caressing the man's cheek in the way he knew Jack found comforting. "It's okay, my beloved, I'm here. I'll get you out," he promised the barely conscious Jack. "We will stick to the plan as if he was a Rift Child," Ianto called back to Adrian.

"A what?" asked an Italian voice. Ianto turned his head and saw a black haired man standing in the shadows tears streaks were on his face.

"Who are you?" Ianto asked not taking his hand off Jack's cheek. Jack was nuzzling against the soft touch.

"Angelo," the man answered.

"I didn't ask your name, I want to know what you are to this man," said Ianto, trying to keep his voice soft so as not to frighten the broken Jack before him.

"I was his lover. This is all my fault," Angelo sobbed.

Ianto felt rage course through his veins, but he swallowed it down and focused his attention on Jack. "One more night. You can handle anything for one night, yeah? Then we'll come back for you and get you out. I'll always come back for you."

Jack nodded slightly in understanding.

TW-TW-TW

"You have to let Angelo do most of it," Adrian insisted.

"I know," Ianto growled. What he wanted to do was string Angelo up and kill him slowly.

"He can't remember your part from tonight," Adrian continued.

"I know," Ianto growled again, more forcefully.

"Don't snap at me, Ianto. I'm on your side."

"I know, damnit!"Ianto shouted.

"And keep your voice down."

Ianto rolled his eyes.

Angelo met them at the time and location they had arranged. Ianto explained, "This is how it's going to work: We'll go in with you to help get him down, then Adrian and I will go take care of the butcher and his family."

Angelo gasped. "You're going to kill the family?"

"No, we're just going to drug them," Adrian assured the man.

Ianto narrowed his eyes. He wanted to string the butcher up and kill him slowly as well, but it was best, when trying to remain underground, to not leave a trail of bodies.

"Anyway," Ianto continued "by the time Jack regains consciousness Adrian and I will be gone and it will be up to you to get him to safety. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Angelo nodded.

"Great, let's get this done." Ianto growled, and the trio headed of into the night to complete their rescue mission.

TW-TW-TW

**_The planet with two suns, Nicandro Village, 4982_**

_Sabina was starting to show, and Ianto was nowhere closer to figuring out how to get them off the planet. Kare's arm was limp across his chest, it was clear that the alien was fast asleep. Ianto stared at the ceiling, silently cursing his helplessness. _

_He was drifting into sleep when suddenly from the sky came a deep thrumming sound, louder than anything Ianto had ever heard. Kare startled awake and ran out to investigate and, after a moment of indecision, Ianto followed._

_Nicandros and Rift Children alike all looked up into the sky. A giant spaceship hovered above them. Ianto felt a wide hopeful grin spread across his face. Maybe prayers were sometimes answered. _


	3. Chapter 3

**AN**: Chapter 3. I want to thank my very lovely beta Taamar. She is sent from above. And she knows how to keep me sane. For the most part. Yep-yep… anyways let the drama continue….

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood or Doctor Who.

Warning: Slash, mentions of prostitution, mentions of death, implied torture, and probably about a million more things.

Rating: MA

Spoilers: Doctor Who- The Empty Child.

**_The Space Ship of Hell…. Year unknown..._**

_Ianto was unsure how long he had been in the tiny cell this time. His captors only came when he was needed. He wondered where Sabina was, if they had done the same things to her. He closed his eyes and went through his memories trying to find one to get him through the next hour or so. Most of the memories he relived in his mind involved Jack, but sometimes he would think of Jason. His guardian's intense and often brutal training was the reason Ianto was surviving this mentally, and he knew it. He would give anything to tell the man that, to wrap his arms around him and apologize for all the times he had thought Jason didn't care. It was clear now that Jason cared. So clear._

_Sometimes his memories would drift to Ruby. He wondered if she grew to be an old woman. Of course, he knew one day he would find out, but he was so far in the future now that everyone he had known then was gone. Well, all the normal people. Even his princess. He turned his thoughts to a vision of her asleep sprawled out in the middle of his bed. He had laughed at the time, wondering how someone so little could take up so much space. He felt his lips curve into a small smile. It felt foreign on his face. _

_He looked up at the white wall and conjured a memory of Jack in his mind. His lover would smile, and Ianto would imagine his words of support and affection. In his mind it was so real that Ianto would reach out to caress the other man before remembering. He wished it was real._

_The sound of the food tray being passed into the cell through a small rectangle hole pulled Ianto away from his contemplation of Jack's features. It wasn't ever anything appetizing, but that didn't matter. Though his body didn't show it, Ianto was starving. He ate the slop happily; it would be a while before his next meal came. It was always a while._

**Earth Danvers, Massachusetts 1931**

Salem Village Rift was the oldest active Rift on earth. The Children had records of its activity dating back to the 1500s and while, when Ianto had first heard of it, he had assumed that it was the cause of the infamous Salem Witch Trials, it wasn't. No, that had been caused by bored teen girls and ignorant adults.

To any normal human it would seem that the number of cars and people at the current residence of Adrian Lefebvre was just the man holding some sort of party, or maybe a family reunion. In reality it was an important meeting of officials from all the current Rifts. It was time to pick the new Minister.

Russell Smith had announced five years before that he would be retiring from his post as Minister. He had been in charge for well over one hundred years and he wanted to learn how to grow roses for a while. Five years notice allowed quite a lot of campaigning, and the competition had been fierce, but in the end it had come down to two candidates. Ianto… and his daughter.

Though she was only in her twenties, his little girl was fierce. She made Ianto's heart glow with pride.

Her facial expressions alone could bring a man to his knees, and her words, delivered in the voice of a child, were devastating in their precision and dry wit.

"Are you ready for this, old man?" Bethan grinned at her father.

"I think the bigger question is are _you_ ready?" Ianto replied from his chair just outside Adrian's dining room.

"Of course I am," she grinned, then kissed him on the cheek.

"May the best man win," Ianto teased, patting his daughter on the back. He knew he was going to win, of course.

Bethan rolled her eyes.

The door to the dining area open and Adrian stood in the doorway, his face impassive. "We've reached a decision."

Bethan and Ianto walked into the room. There was a wooden booster in Bethan's spot. She scowled at Adrian, and he quickly removed it. "Apparently she still hates me," He whispered to Ianto as he pulled the chair out for him. Ianto just shrugged.

The departing Minister cleared his throat and waited for everyone to turn their attention to him. It didn't take long; he was an imposing man. Though he appeared to be only 18 he was, in actuality, over five hundred years old, and he commanded the full force of those years in his eyes. In his beautiful bright green eyes that made Ianto long for Jason.

"Bethan, you have made so much progress, so strong, so independent, and only twenty-five years under your belt. It is quite impressive. But our other option is the man who raised you to be strong and independent. We need his experience. We have chosen David as our new Minister." Russell looked at Ianto and smiled. "I'm sure you will do us proud, Mr. Carter."

"Thank you sir."

TW-TW-TW

"Hello Minister," Brody Ianto's current charge said when Ianto opened the door to his hotel room.

"And how do you know I got the job?" Ianto asked, taking in the view of Brody's lean body stretched out on the bed. He was dressed because Ianto had thus far turned down all of the twenty year old's advances, but it was clear he was dressed to impress. His brown hair was mussed alluringly.

"Oh, just a hunch. Want to celebrate?"

"You're playing with fire kid," Ianto warned, heading to the bathroom in the suite.

"It sure is a hot fire, though."

Ianto rolled his eyes at his own reflection. His eyes caught the scar on his cheek. He looked like Iden. In reality he had looked exactly like Iden for a while, but now as he stood in front of the mirror as the official Minister of the Rifts he actually _felt_ like Iden. He pulled off his shirt so he could get ready to shower.

"I like the tattoo." Ianto heard Brody say. He turned to look as the kid asked, "Where did you get it?"

Ianto didn't want to think about the tattoo. He was turned to face Brody, but all he could see was a doctor in a white coat flanked by rhino soldiers. In his mind he could hear the machine that they had strapped him to, could smell the burning of his own skin, and could feel the pain as if it was real and not just memory.

Ianto shook his head to remove the dark thoughts. "It's not a very fun story," he said, answering his charge's question. It was best not to tell him. Chances were that Brody wouldn't have to deal with anything like that, and even if he did, knowing wasn't going to help.

"Do you want some help in the shower?"

Ianto smiled and put a hand on the back of Brody's head. "You're not shy are you?"

Brody shook his head. Ianto grinned and pushed the kid out of the bathroom.

"You'll give in," Brody called through the door. Ianto rolled his eyes again and started the water for his shower.

TW-TW-TW

"Are you angry?" Brody asked when Ianto came back into the main area of the hotel room after his shower.

"No," Ianto replied.

"When will you give in?"

Ianto sighed. "What is it you want, Brody? You want me to show you how it's done?"

"I just want to be with you," Brody replied.

"Why?"

"You're the only one that's ever cared about me."

Ianto looked at his charge with sad eyes. He understood. He knew the loneliness, the isolation, and the desperate longing. How could he not take what was being offered, and give back whatever he could? He sat next to Brody on the bed and kissed him gently.

**Earth France 1936**

"You can't be serious, Minister; we can't just leave the country." A very distraught Mia complained.

"I'm very serious; all European Rift Children will be going to America until the end of the war. All males will be serving in the war. All as American Volunteers. This is not negotiable."

"Why should we fight in a human war?" Max interjected. Ianto wished he could relocate the man, but he knew he couldn't, not yet. And right now Ianto's patience was stretched even thinner; Brody had left six months before and Ianto wasn't over it quite yet. Not that he ever would be, not with the words that had passed between them.

"We are human," Ianto sighed.

"We are evolved humans. You don't see them getting involved in monkey wars."

Adrian let out a small laugh at Ianto's side. Ianto looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Monkey wars?" Adrian giggled.

"Are all males to fight? Including the weakling?" Max asked.

Adrian's face went blank, and he tensed. Everyone was aware that Adrian had had a bit of a breakdown the previous year, but Ianto had been able to keep the true circumstances secret. The man had come to France to get a glimpse of his mother and it had left him unbalanced. His mental state had deteriorated until Ianto had been forced to intervene.

Ianto narrowed his eyes at Max. God he hated that man. He got up from his seat and walked over to the man who constantly tested him and bent down so he could whisper in the man's ear. "Right now I need you. But someday, when you've outlived your usefulness, I will put a bullet in your head and you will regret the way you've acted. Because sometimes my aim is a little shaky, and it might take me a few tries. I suspect it will be… painful."

The color drained from Max's face, and Ianto's eyes glinted in a feral smile.

**Earth 1941 London**

Ianto sat down next to Adrian at a corner table. It had taken a lot to get the two on the same squad for the war, but there was no one else Ianto would rather fight beside. They sipped their scotches in silence as they listened to the live music.

"I saw Jack," Adrian blurted.

"Oh," Ianto replied. He knew Jack was in London, he had seen him a few times. It was possible that he was stalking him a bit.

"You already knew didn't you?" Adrian accused.

"No." Ianto said, lying terribly.

The song "It Had to be You" came to an end and a man wearing a leather jacket got on stage.

"That is not of this century," Ianto whispered, nudging Adrian so he would look toward the stage.

"Time traveler," Adrian mused.

"Yeah, we should follow him."

"What, why?"

"Would you take 'because I'm the Minister and I said so'?"

"Probably not," Adrian sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Come on, it could be fun."

Adrian reluctantly nodded.

TW-TW-TW

"Go away," the man in the leather coat bellowed, looking back at the spot where Adrian and Ianto thought they were discreetly following him.

"Who are you?" Ianto asked.

"I'm The Doctor," the man replied.

"Really?" Ianto said in disbelief.

"Yes. Now I don't have time to deal with Rift Children at the moment, I'm trying to find my friend."

"Hear that, Ianto? We should leave him be."

"What's your friend's name?" Ianto asked ignoring Adrian.

"Rose."

"Oh… She's very pretty; I met her once, kind of. She was on a monitor. Seemed nice."

The Doctor stopped walking and looked back at Ianto.

"What's your name again?"

"David Carter," Adrian answered before Ianto could.

The Doctor looked toward Adrian. "And yours?"

"Alistair Williams."

"Alistair. That's a name. A good one, too." The Doctor smiled. "Okay, it was nice meeting both of you, but as I said, I don't have time."

Ianto and Adrian watched the Time Lord walk away. Ianto tried to follow but Adrian wouldn't let him. "We need to let him do whatever he came to do."

"You're a spoil sport." Ianto pouted, but he knew his friend was right. It would be too risky to follow after the Time Lord. He'd be meeting Jack soon, and Ianto knew he couldn't be there for that.

Of course, once he saw Rose Tyler hovering above the city he decided to throw caution to the wind. There was no way he could resist at least taking a look at the Chula ship he'd heard about in Jack's stories.

"Come on, it's a space ship, we have to take a look. You've never seen one."

"You said you didn't like space ships," Adrian pointed out.

"but…" Ianto pouted.

"If we get caught it's on you, you understand that."

Ianto nodded. And an hour later the two were in Jack's space ship.

"Nanogenes," Ianto squealed like an excited school girl.

"What do they do?"

"Heal."

"So, useless to us."

"Well, yeah but they are still pretty cool."

Adrian nodded. "Yes, fascinating, we have three minutes before the alarm comes back on."

"Yeah, Yeah," Ianto said opening a drawer that was under the small bunk Jack slept on. There was a photo of what must have been a young Jack with his family. Ianto decided to take it. He remembered Jack saying that this ship got blown up. Maybe when he finally got to be with Jack again he could give the man the picture.

Ianto stumbled backwards when Jack materialized in the ship. Ianto could tell by the man's eyes that this wasn't the Jack who was with the Doctor, the one who belonged in this ship, it was the immortal Jack!

"Oh, hello," Jack said as Ianto and Adrian stared at him in shock "Is this the wrong ship?"

"No," Ianto said trying to avoid the glare that was coming from his best friend. It was one that said 'I told you this was a bad idea.'

"And there it is, exactly what I was after," Jack chimed plucking the picture from Ianto's hand. "Not that it matters, but may I ask why the two of you are here?"

"How about we discuss it over coffee?" Ianto suggested.

"hmm… In a private hotel room?" Jack leered, looking down Ianto's body with open appreciation.

Ianto blushed. "If it would please you," Ianto said suggestively.

"It wouldn't please me," Adrian muttered under his breath.

TW-TW-TW

"This is nice," Jack chimed when he walked into the room that Ianto had acquired.

"I try," Ianto smiled, opening the bottle of scotch he'd ordered from room service and pouring two glasses. "Would you like a drink?"

"Yeah," Jack smiled, looking out the window. "So, are you and Alistair Time Agents?"

"No, just got stuck in the wrong era," Ianto replied, dropping his own special blend of Retcon into the glass he would give to Jack. He took both glasses and walked over to where Jack was standing. Jack took the glass and took a sip. "What about you?"

"Oh… Well, I don't think we have enough time to discuss me," Jack grinned.

"No, I'm sure there are better things we could be doing with our time," Ianto breathed moving a bit closer to Jack.

Jack swallowed the rest of his drink in one swig. "Oh, I couldn't agree more," he leered placing his now empty glass on the window sill and closing the gap between Ianto and him. Ianto set his glass down too so he could give his full attention to Jack. He wanted to cherish this stolen time with his lover even if his lover wouldn't remember it.

Jack pressed his lips gently against Ianto's, but the kiss didn't stay gentle long. Soon it was all tongue and teeth and clothing was being ripped. Ianto felt a need with in Jack, as if the man knew how important the Welshman would be to him one day.

It didn't take long before both men were moving as one on the bed. Ianto was moaning uncontrollably as Jack moved inside him. He kept his eyes open staring intently at Jack's face, not wanting to miss a moment. Finally, the two came together, with Ianto crying Jack's name.

"You're fun," Jack grinned, as the two lay side by side catching their breath.

"Thanks."

"You should come back with me, to Cardiff. You could work with the company I work for."

"Let's talk about it in the morning, you've tuckered me out," Ianto whispered, turning in the bed and wrapping an arm around Jack.

"Yeah, I am feeling rather tired," Jack yawned. That would be the small bit of sedative that Ianto put in his Retcon, a trick he had learned from Jack in the first place.

Ianto stayed until he was sure Jack wouldn't wake, and then eased himself out of the man's embrace. He kissed Jack's temple and said softly, "I'm sorry. I miss you." He took the picture from the familiar coat and then, with one glance back at Jack's sleeping form he left the room.

**Earth, France 1946**

Ianto found the whore house easily enough. Inside lived the young Adrian, only 14 years old and already being sold. Ianto paid the fee and steeled himself for what he was about to see. In the lavish bedroom Ianto found the boy, naked. Young Adrian looked like a child. He was thin, shivering, and covered with bruises. Ianto grabbed a robe off the chair beside the bed.

"Put this on," he told Adrian, keeping his tone calming.

"Have you come to do what the others do…" the boy asked in a shaking voice.

"No, I've come to give you hope. To let you know that it will end."

**Earth, France 1951**

Ianto stood across the street from the place that had housed his best friend in his first life. Adrian stood beside him trembling slightly. Ianto pretended not to notice.

"So your plan is to kill him?" he asked.

"Yes," Adrian answered. "And no one invited you to the party."

"I could command you to leave."

"Then do it."

"Adrian, killing him will mean that he won. It won't change anything."

"It will prevent him from hurting anyone else."

"Do you know the rule?"

"I'm prepared. There's no one I trust more than you to make it painless. A third life sounds great. Like you said in Mexico, remember? Third time's the charm."

Ianto felt tears coming to his eyes. While he knew he could never relocate Adrian, no matter that it was the penalty for a Rift Child committing murder, the fact that his friend was ready for that was painful.

"You said you wouldn't leave me."

Adrian looked over at his friend. "That man is responsible for all the shit in my life. He deserves to die. He deserves to suffer."

The door to the home opened and a priest walked out. "That's the one who killed me," Adrian said.

"And you're letting him walk free?"

"Yes, he released me from my hell."

Ianto nodded and watched as the priest walked away and out of sight. Adrian started across the street. Ianto followed. "If you're going to do it I'm coming with you."

"Suit yourself."

Adrian opened the door and walked into the home. He ignored the butler who seemed beyond shocked to see him and went straight up the stairs. Straight to the room where the Master of the home lived. He kicked the door open.

"Adrian, why aren't you in your room!" the man inside yelled in French.

"I am in my room, Master," Adrian replied then calmly pulled a gun from his pocket. "I am dead in my room. The priest strangled me."

"You're talking crazy. Put the gun down, my love, we can discuss this," The man tried.

"You never loved me!" Adrian yelled.

This was new, Ianto thought.

"Of course I do, my love. You make me happy, you are my prized possession."

Ianto pulled out his own gun and cocked it. No one called his friend a possession.

"I've not been able to let anyone really love me. Because every time I try I see you. Haunting my dreams!" Adrian looked at Ianto and lowered his own gun. "You're right, he's not worth it." he turned to leave the room Ianto followed behind him.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto sat on the bed in Adrian's hotel room and watched the man pack his clothes.

"Did you think that you loved him?" Ianto asked.

"No," Adrian replied.

"Oh."

"I know I loved him," Adrian continued and then he threw the shirt he was holding on the ground and placed his hands over his face. Sobs began to shake through his body. Ianto got off the bed and pulled Adrian into his arms. "He's ruined me."

"No," Ianto cooed. "You're worth a hundred of him. A thousand."

Adrian adjusted his position in Ianto's arms and put his arms around Ianto's waist. He looked up into Ianto's eyes.

"You think so?"

"Yeah," Ianto smiled.

Adrian leaned forward to close the space between their lips. Ianto pulled him closer, running his fingers up the Frenchman's spine and relishing the shiver that coursed through him. Adrian's lips parted slightly in invitation and Ianto darted his tongue over them. The kiss deepened. Adrian's hands slid up under Ianto's shirt, brushing lightly across his nipples. Ianto gasped and drew back to look into the other man's eyes. And when their gazes met the both realized-

"Oh…shit, I'm so sorry…" Adrian exclaimed, pushing away.

"It's okay, don't…" Ianto stammered.

They stared at each other in awkward horror until, suddenly, the tension broke and they started giggling. Giggles progressed to full out laughter, and they fell onto the bed together.

"You're a great kisser," Adrian commented.

"Thanks," Ianto replied. "It was… quite a kiss."

"Oh… this is going to be awkward for a while. I don't have, you know… those feeling for you," Adrian explained.

"Yeah, of course, I know," Ianto nodded. "It's fine. Just… let's not talk about it, yeah?"

"Good," Adrian yawn, turning in the bed and grabbing Ianto's hand. "Thanks for coming today. I couldn't have _not_ done it without you."

"What are best mates for?" Ianto replied, squeezing Adrian's hand gently.

**_The Space Ship of Hell… Year unknown…_**

_Ianto heard his door open and he scurried to the farthest corner of the cell as if there was some sort of safety there._

_"Ianto," Sabina said looking in, "We've really been rescued this time."_

_Ianto took in his friends face and wanted to weep with happiness. She was heavily pregnant but she looked well. He rushed to her and wrapped his arms around her. _

_"Iden?" came a familiar Australian accent. Ianto's head whipped around, startled. There stood the last person he had expected to see. Aria. _


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Thank you Taamar you are a goddess. Also, thanks to everyone who is following and reading this fic. You're all awesome!

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Rating:MA

Warnings: Slash, mentions of non-con, executions. (and probably a dozen other things)

**_Space Ship of Hell… Year Unknown…_**

_"Aria," Ianto breathed detaching himself from Sabina's embrace and taking in the familiar face before him. Aria still had pink streaks running through her beautiful blond hair. She was dressed all in black, and she looked as if she was part of some futuristic swat team._

_"Oh my god, I can't believe it." Aria breathed out stepping forward and walking toward Ianto he met her halfway and pulled her into his arms. She touched his face as if she didn't believe he was real. "You're not Iden yet, are you?"_

_"Not yet," Ianto admitted. _

_"Miller, we need to go," came a voice from the other end of the corridor. A boy who looked about twenty was walking their way. Ianto felt his mouth fall open in shock. The boy's hair was blond and streaked with pink like Aria's, but his face was the spitting image of Ianto's. _

_"Yeah, let's get moving. Is everyone else out?" Aria said, releasing Ianto._

_"Yeah," the boy said slowly, staring at Ianto with sharp curiosity._

_"Okay join hands," Aria commanded, and the four did. "Deep breaths people," Aria yelled and then she pressed a button on her wrist and they all vanished._

**Earth Cardiff 1952**

Ianto hadn't seen Brody in nearly twenty years, so when the man walked into his office he almost didn't recognize him. It was the hair that told Ianto that this man was his past lover. The way it looked as if he had just rolled out of bed. Ianto knew that wasn't the case though, Brody spent hours creating that look of casual disarray.

"Minister," Brody said in a flatly impersonal tone that broke Ianto's heart.

"Brody," Ianto returned, "It's nice to see you. Please have a seat."

Brody sat down in the chair opposite Ianto.

"I want to request a relocation."

"To where, the Bahamas?" Ianto deadpanned knowing good and well what Brody meant and not liking it one bit.

"Smith used to do them. Why can't you?"

"Brody, you can't ask me to do that. I'm not strong enough to put a bullet in your head."

"What if I do something that deserves it?"

"I like to think I trained you better than that."

"Working for Torchwood was supposed to be dangerous."

"It is."

"I'm in charge, did you know? In charge of Jack."

"Yes, I'm aware."

"He's a hell of a lay."

Ianto gritted his teeth. "Making me angry isn't going to change my mind and you know it!"

Brody closed his eyes. "I know," he said gently.

"I love you Brody. It hurt like hell when you left me."

Brody opened his eyes and looked at Ianto. "I had to."

"I didn't think you would choose Torchwood over me."

"That's not fair, David. You were asking me to choose between being the lover you wanted and the man you trained me to be. I could only be your lover for a lifetime; I have to be myself forever."

Ianto nodded his understanding and opened the top drawer of his desk. He pulled out a small pill. It was one he had formulated himself to help him sleep. He knew it would kill a normal person, or a Child on his first life. "If you take this it will be painless. Don't go telling anyone I gave it to you."

Brody took the pill from Ianto's hand. "I hope I will see you again someday."

"Yeah," Ianto said his voice cracking. Brody got up came around the desk and gave Ianto a brief kiss on the lips. Then, without saying another word, he walked out of the office, and Ianto watched another lover leave his life.

**Earth Danvers Mass. 1958**

Ianto walked into Adrian's bedroom to find the man on the floor with his arms wrapped around his bent knees. He was staring blankly ahead.

"Adrian?" Ianto whispered.

"I need space."

"You need to tell me what happened."

"No! I need space!" Adrian roared.

Ianto sat on the floor next to his friend and pretended that he hadn't just been yelled at.

"Erin says that you were fine last week and then suddenly you weren't."

"I don't need you to come to my rescue every time I have a break down."

"Well I'm here, deal with it."

"Mia should be dealing with it, not you. She's the rift leader. This isn't an issue for the Minister."

"I am here as your friend, not as the Minister."

"Well, piss off."

"Adrian."

Adrian turned his face toward Ianto but remained silent.

"How about a move? You could come back to Cardiff with me."

"No."

Ianto put a hand on Adrian's shoulder and the man jumped away. "Don't touch me. I didn't say you could touch me. You promised me!" He shouted. "You promised me," he repeated curling up into a ball and starting to sob.

"Mon cher, what happened," Ianto asked.

Adrian just shook his head and whimpered.

"Don't make me make it a demand," Ianto pleaded.

"I thought that he actually liked me. He invited me to his house, then…" Adrian started to sob uncontrollably again.

"What's his name?"

"Steve Evits, Chase Witt, and Greg Daniels."

Ianto felt his heart sink, "What did they do?"

"They all think I am a freak, because I've never taken a lover. They wanted to show me how good it could feel. It didn't," Adrian stated, moving back into a sitting position and looking straight ahead again.

"Let's get you into your bed, yeah?" Ianto suggested, getting up and putting his hand out to help Adrian to his feet. Adrian looked at the hand for a moment and then grabbed it.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto slammed into Mia's office. "I want Steve Evits, Chase Witt and Greg Daniels in front of me within the hour!"

"Minister, I didn't even know you were in town," Mia smiled, already dialing a number on the phone in front of her to call in the people Ianto wanted to see.

"Apparently there are a lot of things going on in your town you're unaware of," Ianto growled, running his fingers through his hair.

"Hello Jan, yes I'm well… no, I need you to send Steve, Chase, and Greg to my office. Yes, thank you dear."

Ianto sat down in a chair opposite Mia's desk.

"So what is going on that I am unaware of?" Mia asked.

"For one, Adrian has been out for the last week. According to Erin you haven't even called to check on him." Ianto snapped.

"Oh, what else is new?" Mia replied rolling her eyes. "Blondie isn't very dependable."

"He was raped! Three of your people raped him! Tied him to a bed, insisted that he would like it!" Ianto yelled. Mia mouth opened in shock.

"Christ," she whispered.

The door to Mia's office opened and three men walked in. "You wanted to see us," one of the men said.

Mia looked up at the man, "Yes, this is the Minister of the Rifts, he has a special assignment for you," she said without missing a beat.

The men came the rest of the way into the office and the door shut behind them.

"And what would that be?" said the second man in an almost arrogant tone.

Ianto pulled out his gun, glad that the Salem Village Rift's headquarters was underground.

"Knees," he growled.

They all fell to them. Ianto walked around the figures. "Listen I know what this is about, but he's lying. He wanted it." one of the men pleaded. Ianto slammed the butt of his gun into the man's head. The man let out a grunt of pain.

"See, I felt like you wanted that," Ianto deadpanned.

The man kneeling in the middle of the line of the accused pissed himself.

"Well that's not attractive at all," Mia giggled.

"Nope," Ianto agreed, then shot the man in the back of the head. The other men let out cries of anguish, but soon Ianto had relocated both of them as well.

"Feel better?" Mia asked peering down at the bodies on the floor of her office.

"No, I got blood on my shirt," Ianto pouted.

TW-TW-TW

**Florida, Rift Child Sanctuary 1958**

"I was thinking I could paint murals on walls," Adrian explained from his seat on a clean white couch in the middle of his new living area.

"Yeah, I like that, sounds good," Ianto smiled.

"Are you sure you're okay with this? If you need me to work somewhere else I will, you know."

"You need a break. Take it, okay? We all need them sometimes."

"You've never taken one," Adrian pointed out.

_One day_, Ianto thought. "I'll come to visit as often as I can, yeah?"

Adrian nodded. "I thought that Chase was the man you told me about."

Ianto shook his head. "No. He wasn't."

"Will you tell me when I finally do meet him?"

"I have a feeling that you will figure it out," Ianto grinned.

Adrian smiled. "I hope he has green eyes."

**Earth Cardiff 1959**

"Jason that's hot, it just came out of the oven," Ianto explained to the man who had come through the rift just hours before.

Jason looked back at Ianto and reached his hand out to touch the casserole dish. Ianto rolled his eyes when the big man pulled his hand back with a shout.

"I told you it was hot," Ianto explained walking over to the crouching man. He took the man's wrist, intending to show him that the burn was already healing, but Jason shoved him away with a scowl, letting out what Ianto assumed was a string of curses in Old Slavic. Ianto didn't understand why Jason hadn't taught him the language. It was making things difficult.

Ianto stepped back with his arms out at his side, indicating that he had no intention of touching Jason again. "It's OK. I'm not trying to restrain you, Jason."

"Jason," the man said with his hand over his heart.

"That's right, you are Jason. I am Ianto."

"Ianto," Jason repeated touching Ianto's chest. Ianto nodded.

Jason started to speak gibberish again.

"I wish I could understand you but I am only picking up a few words." Ianto mused to himself.

Ianto got up and gestured for Jason to follow him. He pulled out a chair at the small table in the room. "Chair," he explained pointing to the chair as he sat in his own.

"Chair," Jason repeated, sitting.

"Good," Ianto smiled noticing that Jason said it exactly like he did, with a Welsh accent and everything. He remembered asking Jason about that, once. "Good," Ianto repeated, looking across the table at the man. He was hardly recognizable with his long dark hair. It was wet because he had appeared in a mud puddle and Ianto had given him a shower. In which Jason had shown that he knew how to give a hand job. He also showed that kissing was a universal thing as well.

Jason had been so frightened of the shower that in his already vulnerable state he had started to cry. Ianto remedied it the way Jason used to do with him: with gentle kisses. Jason had then taken it upon himself to further the interaction; he had gripped Ianto's cock without warning and Ianto had just let it move on from there until they had both been satisfied and cleaned.

"Hand job," Jason said as if he knew what Ianto was thinking about.

"Not right now, we are going to eat now." Ianto explained heading over to the check if the casserole was cool enough to serve.

"Hot," Jason yelled.

Ianto looked back at him. "It's okay. I know what I'm doing."

Bethan came into the kitchen. "Who's this?"

Ianto looked back at her. "This is Jason. Be nice. He doesn't understand English."

"Then why should I be nice? He won't understand, watch." Bethan got on the chair opposite of Jason. "Hey how you doing, dummy?"

"Bethan May Jones," Ianto warned.

Jason jumped at Ianto's voice.

"You scared him, Tad," Bethan laughed.

Ianto walked other to the table holding a bowl of his casserole for Jason and a spoon.

"I'm sorry Jason." Ianto smiled Jason just looked at him with wide eyes. Ianto put the bowl in front of Jason and then caressed the man's cheek. "Everything's okay."

"Hand job," Jason said.

Bethan busted out laughing. Ianto pointed a finger at her. "Don't think I won't send you to your room."

Bethan got down off the chair she had been standing in giggles still coursing through her body. "I got stuff to do anyway," she said walking out of the kitchen trying desperately to keep the laughter in. Ianto heard the giggles begin again as soon as she was out of sight. He sighed.

Jason was holding his bowl close to his chest as if he thought someone might take it as he shoveled the casserole into his mouth with the spoon.

"No, we do not eat that way." Ianto explained. He made eye contact with Jason and demonstrated proper table manners. Jason frowned but tried to mimic him.

"Good job." Ianto praised.

Jason smiled. "Hand job."

Ianto wished he hadn't taught the man those words.

TW-TW-TW

"This is called a bed. This is where we sleep." Ianto explained to Jason, pulling the quilt on his bed back. He slept in the smaller room of the home now because he was always traveling. Bethan was the leader of the Cardiff Rift so he felt she needed the bigger room.

Ianto got in the bed and patted the space beside him. Jason got in and laid in the exact same way that Ianto was laying.

"I've missed you," Ianto smiled, putting his hand on Jason's cheek. Jason just looked at him in confusion. Ianto sighed. "Hand job."

Jason's face lit up; apparently sex was a universal language, too.

Jason moved closer to Ianto's body and quickly slid his hand into Ianto's pants to grip his cock. Ianto felt his eyes roll back in pleasure and he quickly tried to put a hand into the pants that Jason was wearing only to have Jason push it away. "No," Jason stated firmly.

"Okay," Ianto replied, resisting the urge to smile. He knew from long experience that Jason couldn't let someone else control him in the bedroom.

Jason continued to stroke Ianto and then pressed their lips together, proving once again that he was a great kisser. Jason removed his hand from Ianto, pulled the Welshman's pants off and pushed him to his back.

Ianto moaned at the familiar feeling of Jason's weight on top of him and bucked his hips up into Jason causing the man to let out a little grunt. Ianto pulled away from the kiss and smiled at Jason. "This is called making out."

Jason narrowed his eyes then brought his hand to his face and spit on two of his fingers. "Making out." Jason said then kissed Ianto again causing Ianto to momentarily forget about the finger spitting incident. That was until Jason tried to press a spit covered finger into him.

"Umm… lube is needed if we want to continue with that."

Jason pressed another finger in.

Ianto pushed him away and almost laughed at the sad face Jason made. "Don't worry, we're not done." Ianto explained, pulling a bottle of lube out of the top drawer of his bedside table. He grabbed Jason's hand and put a small bit on it.

Jason tested the way it felt on his fingers than smiled and pushed the two now lubricated fingers back into Ianto.

"Yeah, see," Ianto breathed, "That's a lot better."

Jason's smile grew and he grabbed the lube off the bed where Ianto had placed it. He got up and pulled off his pants ripping them along the way. He poured some of the liquid on his cock then spread it all over it.

He pulled Ianto toward him and then pressed in a bit quicker than he should have, but Ianto let it go as his guardian started to move inside him, grunting in a way that was primal and, Ianto had to admit, a bit sexy.

Jason leaned down so that the pair's chests were pressed against each other. "Making out," Jason demanded. Ianto leaned his head up a bit and captured Jason's lips. He soon found himself making noises just as primal as Jason proved that his ability to time orgasms was one he had learned in his first life.

** Earth Cardiff 1961**

Ianto rushed through the door to the Victorian home. The place was filled with body guards.

"Where?" Ianto breathed out.

"In her room, Minister," One of the men stated. Ianto rushed up the stairs to the room at the end of the hall.

Bethan was sitting on her bed and Jason was beside her. She was crying on his shoulder and he was offering her small coos in return.

"Merch," Ianto whimpered getting on the bed and pulling his adoptive daughter to him.

"I thought I was going to die," she sobbed. Ianto looked up at Jason. He knew that Jason was the reason the attempt on Bethan's life had failed. According to the brief account he had gotten, Jason had snapped the man's neck before he had time to pull the trigger.

Jason moved off the bed and then made to leave the room. "Don't leave," Bethan demanded. Jason stopped and looked back at her. "You're part of this family. You stay with us."

Jason sat back down on the bed. "Would you like for to read something?"

Ianto smiled, Jason's English wasn't perfect yet. "No, just stay until I fall asleep."

**Earth Scotland 1965**

Ianto used binoculars to watch as twelve children were loaded onto a bus.

"I'm bored." Jason complained from the passenger seat.

"I told you, you didn't have to come," Ianto growled.

Jason shifted in his seat. "Hey, that's the guy you stalk."

Ianto put his binoculars down and looked at Jason who was now looking through his own pair of binoculars. "I don't stalk him."

"Yes you do," Jason replied.

Ianto just sighed and looked through his binoculars again.

"Did you bring anything to eat?" Jason complained.

"I told you to eat before we left the hotel."

"I wasn't hungry then."

Ianto put his binoculars down again and looked at Jason. "If you shut up and be quiet for the rest of this little adventure I will let you tie me to the bed. Kay?"

Jason nodded and made a show of zipping his mouth shut, no doubt a gesture that Bethan had taught him.

Ianto rolled his eyes and went back to watching the bus. He watched Jack get into the driver's seat and then he put his binoculars down and started his own car. "Let's get back to the hotel. There's no reason for me to watch anymore. I'd probably just try to prevent it, and I can't do that," he sighed.

Jason didn't speak. Ianto looked over at him.

"You may speak." Ianto said rolling his eyes.

"That was a boring adventure."

"Well, let's begin a new adventure," Ianto grinned.

Jason nodded in agreement.

**_The Planet of the Gods where there are no grapes._**

_Ianto sat on the small bed in the room that was now his. He was trying to digest everything he had just learned. _

_Aria had been pregnant when she was relocated. He hadn't known it was possible, but the rift saved the pregnancy so when Aria turned up on this planet the baby was still safe within her, though not without a few odd changes. For one, he had been born with pink streaks in his blond hair, like the ones Aria had always dyed into hers. For another, he had grown normally until the age of nineteen, then stopped. He buzzed with rift energy that Rift Children could feel, but his energy was softer somehow. He was now seventy-nine years old, and his name was Iden Jr. Aria called him IJ._

_The door to Ianto's room open with a soft swoosh sound and Aria walked in. "I've brought coffee."_

_"Aria, you're a goddess." Ianto chimed, getting up and taking a mug. It wasn't the best coffee, but it was the first he had had in at least two years, so Ianto didn't mind. "So what do you do here on this little planet?" he asked, sitting back down on the bed._

_"I'm kinda a big deal," Aria smiled._

_"Oh?" Ianto teased raising an eyebrow._

_"Yep, I run the place. We are pretty much a rebel band of Children looking to put an end to all forms of slavery."_

_"That's noble."_

_"Yep," Aria smiled popping the p._

_"Do you have a new lover?" Ianto asked._

_Aria nodded. "Ryker. Hardly new, we've been together for seventy-four years."_

_"That's nice."_

_"Yeah, it is."_


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Hiya! Chapter 5. It was a fun one to write. Thanks to Taamar she's super great. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.**

**Rating: MA**

**Warnings: The usual suspects. **

**_Planet of the Gods._**

_Ianto was walking around an outdoor market place when he got another surprise. Standing in the sunlight was a familiar face. A face he had feared would hold scars, but it didn't. Lisa was as perfect as she had been when she and Ianto woke up together the morning of the Battle of Canary Wharf._

_Without a moment's hesitation Ianto ran to his lost lover. "Lisa," he smiled._

_"Ianto?"_

_He nodded and she slapped him across the face. He held his cheek in surprise._

_"What was that for?"_

_"For not being able to tell the difference between me and that machine. It had control over me and all I could do was watch, and you kept me alive and in pain and all I wanted was to die and move on!"_

_"I'm so sorry, Lisa. I just I couldn't."_

_Lisa sighed. "I know, you sod."_

_He smiled and the two embraced. _

_"Where are you staying?" Lisa asked._

_Ianto pointed to the biggest residence at the far end of the market. _

_"No shit?" Lisa gasped. _

_"No shit," Ianto smiled._

_"Well lead the way, big shot," Lisa teased._

_Aria was in the foyer when Ianto and Lisa came into the expansive futuristic home. She narrowed her eyes slightly at the new guest but then composed her features._

_"Hello," Aria said sweetly._

_"Hiya," Lisa chimed. "This place is nicer than I even imagined."_

_Aria looked expectantly at Ianto._

_"Aria, this is Lisa. Lisa this is Aria."_

_Ianto bit his lip as he watched his past lover and future lover shake hands._

_"I was Ianto's girlfriend during his first life," Lisa explained._

_"I'll be his wife in his third life," Aria replied as if trying to one-up the woman before her._

_"How nice," Lisa smiled._

_"I'm his son, do I get a prize?" IJ laughed coming through the foyer and heading down the hall. Ianto couldn't help but laugh at that. IJ and he were getting along okay but IJ had already made it clear that he wouldn't be calling Ianto dad. _

_Ianto grabbed Lisa's hand and started to lead her down the hall trying to hold in laughter. "Ianto, when you get a chance Ryker wants to discuss the new ship with you." Aria called after him. _

_"Okay," Ianto called back, pressing the button to open the door to his room._

_As the door closed he realized that while he was sure there were a number of things he and Lisa needed to talk about, he couldn't think of a single thing to say. The awkward moment stretched out until Lisa finally broke the tension by pressing her lips against Ianto's, and then there was no need for words._

**Earth Cardiff 1974**

"Torchwood has a Child." Bethan yelled, coming into her father's room in the middle of the night.

Ianto let out a small grunt when she turned on the light and made a mental note to hide the small stool he kept by the light switch.

"I don't like being woken up," Jason mumbled.

"Tad this is serious!"

"It really isn't," Ianto insisted.

"Care to explain why?" Bethan asked.

"Because he's your father and he said so," Jason interjected.

"Pretty much," Ianto yawned. "Go. I'm not dealing with this now."

Bethan let out a little growl, then stomped on to the stool and flipped the light switch off. She stomped out of the room, cursing under her breath.

"Language!" Ianto called.

"I don't like being woke up," Jason mumbled again.

"I know, Jace."

"It's always hard to go back to sleep."

"Not talking is the first step."

Jason sighed. Then he turned in the bed. He stayed still for a moment then he shifted again. Again he stayed still. Then another move. Ianto tried to ignore it, but he realized that there would be no more sleep for him until he got the other man settled. And he knew exactly how to do that.

"Alright, let's fuck. Will that help?" Ianto said, sitting up in exasperation.

"Wouldn't hurt," Jason smiled.

**Earth Cardiff 1983**

"So do you like it?" Jason asked showing Ianto around his newly built home.

"Very posh," Ianto agreed just as the doorbell to Jason's new home rang.

"My first guest," Jason chimed with a grin.

"Oi, what am I?"

"Family."

They both went to the door. Jason opened it to reveal Adrian.

"Adrian, I didn't know you were coming," Ianto exclaimed as he pushed past Jason to embrace his best friend.

"Yeah, I wanted to surprise you."

"Well, you have, and that's hard to do," Ianto grinned, pulling back to view his friend.

Jason cleared his throat and looked meaningfully at Ianto, then at Adrian.

"Oh sorry, Adrian, this is Jason. Jason this is my best mate Adrian."

Jason held out his hand to Adrian. "Pleasure to meet you," he leered.

Ianto took a step away so he could get a better look at the interaction. He'd waited years for the two to meet, and he didn't intend to miss a thing. Adrian looked at Jason's hand and then looked up at the man's face. Ianto saw the exact moment when Adrian fell for the green eyed man. Love at first sight did exist after all. Ianto bit his lip to keep from smiling.

"I don't like to shake hands," Adrian stammered out.

"Oh, would you rather a hug?" Jason grinned, putting his hand down.

Ianto saw Adrian's pale skin turn deep crimson.

"No, I… It's nice to meet you, Jason." Adrian stammered. Ianto bit his lip harder. Adrian wasn't a social butterfly to begin with but he had never seen the man stammer in front of a new person. It amused him, in a heartwarming sort of way.

"So Jason and I were just taking a tour of the new house here, and then we were going to get a pizza. Join us?" Ianto asked.

"Sounds good," Adrian agreed.

Ianto made up an excuse thirty minutes later to leave the two men alone together.

TW-TW-TW

"Yan," Adrian whispered, pulling Ianto from his dream.

"What," Ianto grunted.

"Jason's the man isn't he? The one you told me about?"

Ianto sat up in bed to see his best friend staring at him.

"Why would you think that?"

"Because he is just like me."

Ianto narrowed his eyes. "Wait, what? No, he isn't."

"He is," Adrian said, getting up and flipping the light on in the room. He sounded happier than Ianto had ever heard him sound.

"Okay, how?"

Adrian turned and looked at Ianto. "One," he said holding up a finger, "We both had a crap first life. I was sold into prostitution by my mother, he was killed because he loved a man."

Ianto held up his hand. "No, he died in battle."

"Yeah, he said he told you that. Anyway, not the point."

"I think it's a big point."

"Hush. Okay, now as I was saying. So, we both view sex in crazy ways; I try to avoid it, he needs to have it. "

"Alright, I'll give you that."

"I really like him. He really likes me," Adrian concluded, holding up a third finger.

"It's a real fairy tale," Ianto yawned, falling back onto his bed.

"I'm so excited. I need to move, to do something."

"Why didn't you stay with him?"

"I didn't think I was ready, to you know, make that leap."

"What do you want to do then?"

"Yell from rooftops."

"What do you want to do that won't get us arrested?"

Adrian was silent. Ianto looked up at him. "I want to have sex."

"I assume you're not propositioning me?" Ianto questioned.

"God, no," Adrian said, grimacing.

"Wow. That face did so much for my self- esteem."

Adrian ignored the comment. "Oh my god, I can't believe this. I've never wanted to… with another person, you know? I mean, it's not like I have been dead down there, I self-satisfy."

"Oh god," Ianto groaned, burying his face in his pillow.

Adrian rolled his eyes then continued as if there hadn't been an interruption. "But this is different."

"So what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to go have sex because I want to," Adrian said as if he'd finally convinced himself. He walked out of the room with a determined stride. Ianto just smiled at the door shaking his head slightly.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto was busy making coffee it his kitchen when Jason came into the room.

"Hey," Ianto grinned.

"I had sex with Adrian."

"I know."

"Oh… well okay. He says he is still going to go back to the US in a week. So it's going to be a long distance thing."

Ianto looked at Jason over his coffee cup. "Okay." Where the hell was Jason going with this?

"What I want to know is if we still get to have sex?"

"Ahh…" Ianto replied finally understanding what Jason was worried about. "No, I don't think it would be wise to do."

Jason nodded. "Oh." He seemed a bit saddened.

"Jace, I just don't think that now that you two have met I would feel right about it. He's my best mate."

"He said he understood that I would have other lovers," Jason interjected.

"Well, I don't think it encompasses his best friend."

"What doesn't encompass a best friend?" Adrian chimed, coming into the kitchen.

"Nothing. Coffee?" Ianto smiled.

TW-TW-TW

**Earth Cardiff August 19****th**** 1983**

Ianto stared through the Plexiglas at the newborn Jones baby. It was surreal for him.

"He's gonna be a good one, I can tell," said a man beside him. Ianto turned to find himself looking at his father. His father, however, was staring straight at the tiny baby in the nursery.

"What if he's not," Ianto whispered.

"Ah… Well, his Tad will love him anyway." Mr. Jones declared, slapping Ianto on the back. "I'd give you a cigar but apparently it's not allowed anymore."

Ianto smiled to himself.

"So which of these little ones is yours?"

"The little girl," Ianto lied, pointing to a baby that was beside his younger self in the nursery.

"Oh, I have a girl. It's a special bond." Mr. Jones explained. Ianto nodded, thinking of his two daughters. One wasn't even born yet, though it didn't change his love for her, and the other was adopted, but his love for her didn't waver either.

"Thank you, sir, enjoy your son. I have to go pick up some toothpaste for the wife, she forgot to put it in the bag."

Mr. Jones nodded. "Women, they are forgetful."

Ianto controlled his expression carefully and walked away. He made it as far as the next corridor before he started to cry.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto stared at himself in the mirror. He brushed a finger over his small scar. He couldn't get his head around any of it. He wasn't Ianto Jones, not now, someone else held his name. An innocent little baby. The man staring back at him wasn't innocent. Far from it.

"Tad," Bethan said. Ianto looked toward her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just been a long day."

Bethan nodded and pulled a stool next to the sink so she could look in the mirror beside her father. "What do you think my mother looked like?"

Ianto met her gaze in the mirror. "Oh, I bet she had your dark hair. But I bet you got your freckles from your father. That small gap in your teeth most likely came from your grandfather on your father's side. Your eyes, of course those came from you mum."

Bethan smiled at the picture Ianto was painting her. In reality she didn't know where she came from, but she had known who Cinderella (the happy Disney one) was so Ianto assumed that she was from the late 20th or early 21st century just like him.

"Do you think she misses me?"

"Of course she misses you, dear one," Ianto assured her.

"You think she would be upset that I don't remember her?"

"No, how could anyone be upset with you?" Ianto insisted moving behind his daughter and beginning to braid her long hair just as he had done when she had first come through the rift.

"I love you, Tad."

"I love you too."

**_Ianto's Very Own Spaceship. _**

**_Crew Complement:_**

**_Lisa – Second in Command_**

**_Cy – Ship's Pilot_**

**_Keona – Navigator_**

**_Blaise – Mechanic_**

**_Zan – Cook_**

_Ianto didn't think he would ever get to call himself a captain but as he sat on his very own space ship he realized he indeed was a captain now. _

_ "We're ready when you are Captain," Lisa smiled. Ianto looked toward her. It had been five years since their frantic, passionate re-acquaintance, and they had settled into a much more casual working relationship. They'd had time to realize that they weren't as in love as they had been before. They were, however, still compatible when it came to working together and occasionally sleeping together, which was why Lisa was his second in command. She was loyal and competent, and in this context that was more important to Ianto than a mere lover. _

_"Yeah, let's do this, team," Ianto demanded._

_"Aye-aye, Captain," Cy the pilot chimed and then the roar of the engines started up. Ianto couldn't help the grin that came to his face. Life was good, not great of course because there was no Jack, but it was good._

_TW-TW-TW_

_"Sir, I've detected a trader ship." Keona the navigator called through the intercom system. _

_"Can you tell if it's legal?" Ianto asked, talking back to the girl through the intercom in his small room. He was trying to be quiet because Lisa was sleeping._

_"Nope, it's pretty big and my systems are only detecting two life forms on board. Seems fishy to me." _

_"Weapons?"_

_"No, sir."_

_"See if they will communicate. They could be in distress."_

_"Yes, sir."_

_"What's going on," Lisa muttered. _

_"Keona's detected a trader ship." Ianto explained, pulling on his clothes. _

_"Mmm, okay," Lisa mumbled, rolling over and falling back to sleep. Ianto smiled and shook his head. _

_"So have you got anyone?" Ianto asked when he came into the bridge._

_"Time agents." Cy replied. Ianto looked up from straightening his utility belt to see John Hart and Jack on the full screen. _

_"Ahh… and then came the complications," Ianto sighed._


	6. Chapter 6

**_AN:_** Look how lucky you guys are. Taamar and I got this one out quick. Taamar thank you so much for your help with this chapter. You keep me sane (for the most part)

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood. (Bummer)

Warnings: Usual stuff…

Rating: MA

**_Ianto's Very Own Spaceship_**

_"This is a nice ship you have," Jack said looking around the small eating area. Zan, the ships chef had made them all a nice dinner._

_"Thank you, her name is Ruby Jewel," Ianto smiled._

_"Been out long?" John asked stuffing a bit of food into his mouth. _

_"Three years," Ianto replied. He looked at his team members, realizing that none of them wanted to talk; they were all nervous about having the time agents on the ship, even if one of them was a Rift Child. Ianto knew the pair were plotting something, though, so he had come up with a plan before the two men had materialized into his ship. One: Separate the agents. Two: use their weakness (sex) to learn their plans. Three: discuss. Seemed simple enough to Ianto._

_"Had any good orgies?" John asked._

_Cy looked up from his food. "Well, there was this time. Some kinda alien gas…" he began._

_"We don't speak of it…" four separate voices shouted in unison._

_"What about you guys?" Ianto asked looking for a change of subject._

_"Oh, we've had tons of good orgies," Jack grinned. Ianto couldn't help but grin back at him. _

_"What I meant was how long have you been stuck on that trading ship?"_

_"Oh, see you need to clarify things with a man like me. I could give you a private lesson if you wish." Jack smiled. Ianto knew that the younger version of his lover was avoiding the question and decided to allow it. For now. _

_Ianto got up from his seat and held out his hand to Jack. "Alright Captain, I'd love a private lesson." _

_Jack took Ianto's hand and Ianto began to lead him out of the dining hall, he glanced back at his team when he did, and winked. Step one: Separate the agents. Accomplished._

**Earth Cardiff 1992**

Ianto received odd looks as he stood on the beach in a suit and tie holding a white robe. He didn't really mind, he was just waiting for Joy to arrive. He remembered the date but not the exact time, so he had come prepared to spend the day.

"You're not blending in very well," Jason said, coming up beside Ianto looking exactly like a god in his blue swim trunks.

Ianto just shrugged. Jason laid down in the sun as if he planned on getting a tan. Ianto sighed as he gazed at the man's perfect body glowing in the sun, remembering the feel of that body against his own. It had been a very long time since he'd had a lover, and the frustration was beginning to wear him down, but Ianto ruthlessly suppressed the stirrings of desire, reminding himself that this man, above all others, was off limits to him.

"Where is Adrian today?" Ianto asked, invoking his best friend's name like a charm to halt his wandering thoughts.

"Australia, remember? Been there a week," Jason grinned.

"I meant have you talked to him."

"Yeah, we had a pretty intense conversation this morning," Jason leered.

Ianto rolled his eyes. This was decidedly not helping him keep his mind of sex. He scanned the beach and caught a flash of light. Jason followed as Ianto walked toward it. By the time Ianto reached the spot the light was gone but in its place was an extremely agitated (and naked) Joy Parker.

"Hello, I'm David Carter," he said, holding out the robe, "You're safe now, Joy."

**Earth Cardiff 2000**

"I don't want him," Jason stated simply.

Ianto narrowed his eyes. "You don't want me."

"He isn't you!"

Ianto remembered Jason saying that he wasn't happy about having a new charge the first day they met, but he had figured it had been a ploy. Apparently not.

"I just lost Janet, I'm not ready to do it again. I need a break."

Ianto crossed his arms over his chest. "You will meet little me at the bus station. You will bring him here, and you and Bethan will explain everything to him about being a Child. Then you will take him to your home and you will begin his training. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

Jason nodded.

"Good, and just so you know, it hurts to think that you didn't want me!" Ianto growled and then left the house. He would be staying at his flat when he came to town at least for the next three years.

Ianto decided to go to a pub near his flat just to let off some steam. It was her grin that draw him to her. It was obviously forced as she stared at the young bartender, but it held something familiar. He took a chance and sat in the stool next to her.

"Hello, I'm David Carter," he said, holding out his hand. She smiled; it was a warm smile that made his heart long for someone else.

"Alice Carter," she replied.

"Well we share a name so I must buy you a drink?"

"I've already ordered a scotch."

Ianto got the bartenders attention. "Put her scotch on my tab and get me a water." The young bartender nodded.

"So what brings you to Cardiff?" Ianto asked. She didn't sound Welsh.

"Daddy issues."

"Ahh… I've had a few of those myself."

"Not like mine, I bet," she said, shaking her head. Again, Ianto felt that subliminal pull. What was it about this woman? The bartender placed a scotch in front of her and she downed it in one go. "Another, please."

Ianto nodded at the bartender and another scotch was placed in front of Alice.

She knocked back the new scotch as quickly as she had the first. "He has no sense, my father. Just because he donated the sperm that made me doesn't give him the right to be a part of my life."

"That's very true," Ianto agreed.

Alice looked at him. "He's bought me a house. A nice one, too, with a beautiful room for the baby. It's all paid for, he said. He thought it was the best gift he had ever given, and that I should have been so grateful."

"Love can't be bought," Ianto replied, wondering how many scotches Alice had had before he sat beside her.

"No," Alice agreed and then she started to cry slightly. "It's not his fault he's the way he is. I know, but I've been told since I was a child he was dangerous. I just want to keep my son safe, no matter how much I love my father." She signaled to the bartender to give her another drink, Ianto shook his head at the man, and suddenly the pieces fell into place. Alice, her son, and a dangerous father who couldn't be in her life. Jack.

"Alice, why don't I take you home," Ianto suggested.

She nodded stumbled a bit as she got off the barstool, but Ianto caught her, and soon they were in a cab on their way to the new home Alice's father had bought her.

"So where is your son tonight?" Ianto asked as Alice fumbled to unlock the door.

"With his father."

"Oh… that's nice."

Alice shrugged and opened the door. Ianto helped her up the stairs and into what must've been the master bedroom, where Alice promptly kicked off her shoes then landed face down on the bed. Ianto chuckled and then pulled the covers out from under her and tucked her in. He then went down stairs and fell asleep on her sofa. He wasn't sure why he stayed. Maybe he just wanted to see her smile again.

**Earth Cardiff February 2003**

Ianto watched as his younger self pulled away from Jason's house. If he remembered correctly little Ianto was on his way to a pub, which was a no-no. Ianto smiled at the memory. He knew that tonight was going to be hard for his younger self, though, so the smile didn't stay long.

Soon after little Ianto's car pulled away Jason's Land Rover came into view. Gwen Cooper was in the passenger seat. Jason visibly sighed when he saw Ianto coming toward the front door as he unlocked it.

"David. Wasn't aware you were in town."

"Well, I am."

"I'm Gwen," Gwen slurred holding out her hand for Ianto to shake.

Ianto was never one to be rude, so he shook it. "I'm David; it's nice to meet you Gwen."

The three made their way into the home. "So what brings you here?" Jason asked.

Ianto shrugged. He literally didn't know, he just knew he was supposed to meet Gwen Cooper here, and now he had, so he reckoned he could leave. His head still hurt when he thought about doing a thing simply because he knew he had done that thing.

"Gwen, my room is on the second floor the very last door on the right, I'll meet you up there," Jason explained to the dark haired woman. She nodded and climbed up the stairs. Jason turned to look at Ianto. "So have you come to give me a new way to torture my charge? You know, because he doesn't hate me enough." Jason spat.

Ianto had been surprised to find how angry Jason was at him when he explained everything that he had gone through and everything he would need to prepare little Ianto for. "No, Jace, I haven't. And just so you know, at this moment, he loves you and only you," Ianto spat, turning to leave. "But of course, so does Adrian. It won't stop you from fucking that woman, though, will it?" he left the house and slammed the door behind him.

**Earth Cardiff March 2003**

Ianto walked into Alice's house with a sleeping three year old in his arms. The three of them had spent the day at the park and the movies. Stephen was a fun kid, and Alice was a great mom.

"I'll go put him to bed," Ianto smiled at his friend. She nodded. Ianto took the little boy to his room and laid him on his toddler bed, then met Alice in the living room.

"Are you gay?" Alice blurted when Ianto sat beside her.

He looked at the woman in shock. He paused a moment, then replied, "I don't like to put labels on my sexuality."

"So you're bi."

"What does it matter?" Ianto sighed.

"It doesn't. I just know this guy that I thought would be a good fit for you."

"Oh, god, Alice. Please don't try and set me up with people."

"Three years I've known you, David, and I've never seen you with anyone."

"I travel too much," Ianto explained just as his cell phone began to ring. It was Jason.

"Ianto's left, he's gone," Jason yelled as soon as Ianto answered the phone.

"Yeah, I do remember something like that. Give me a moment, I'm with a friend," Ianto stated. He stood and gave Alice an apologetic look. She got up and gave him a brief hug before he left the house. "Okay, you may continue." Ianto sighed as he got in his car.

" He's just gone. He didn't even give me a reason. Why did you leave, do you remember?"

"Yes, I remember, but I can't tell you."

"I love you," Jason whimpered.

"How about I come over and we watch some Bond?" Ianto sighed.

"Okay," Jason sniffled.

**_Ianto's Very Own Spaceship_**

_"I hope your lesson won't require too much space. My room is rather small, it may be a tight fit." Ianto leered._

_"I'm very good with small spaces," Jack growled. He pressed Ianto up against a wall and leaned in to kiss him. Ianto flipped their positions with ease. Mortal Jack was not nearly as strong as immortal Jack. Ianto grabbed a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped it across Jack's lips. _

_"Is that paralyzing lip gloss or are you just really good about keeping your lips moisturized?"_

_Jack just stared at Ianto in slight awe. "I see I've underestimated you."_

_"Yes, but you'll never learn not to, so don't fret too much," Ianto whispered and then pressed his lips against Jacks. Jack returned the kiss with excitement. Ianto pulled back. "Now, let's get to my room so you can teach me that lesson."_

_The kissing started back up the moment they were in the cramped space. Ianto effectively steered Jack onto his small bed then just as effectively removed the man's clothes and secured him to the bed. He gently nuzzled his face against Jack's cock then pulled away slightly. "Clarify for me why you were on that trader ship, and why you want to take my ship over, and I will clarify exactly where I want this to be," Ianto bargained seductively, running his finger along Jack's erection._

_Jack looked down at him. "Oh, you're good." Ianto bent forward and let his breath tease Jack's need. "Okay," Jack whimpered, "We detected a temporal explosive on the trader ship when it was docked at Sintel Station."_

_"Those are illegal," Ianto mused, making sure more of his breath hit Jack's cock._

_"Yeah," Jack moaned. He tried to buck up into Ianto's mouth but Ianto held the man's hips down. _

_"Continue," Ianto stated. Jack closed his eyes and looked up at the ceiling over the bed. _

_"We boarded the ship and found the bomb with ease. Only we got caught. So we were taken hostage."_

_"How terrifying, did they tie you up," Ianto teased letting his tongue dart out to lick the small bit of pre-cum that was leaking from Jack._

_"Yes," Jack moaned. Ianto wasn't sure if it was an answer to the question or encouragement. "but we easily escaped and then there was a bit of a struggle over the bomb and it detonated. So all the crew and everyone aboard the ship were sent somewhere or somewhen else."_

_"You weren't?" Ianto questioned, no longer teasing now that he was getting the answers he needed. _

_"We have an anti-time shift on our wristbands," Jack explained._

_"Hmm… Okay. Now why did you plan to take over my ship?"_

_"We need to kinda run from the agency for a while; the mistake we made was massive."_

_"You could've just asked." Ianto chided, getting up off the small bed and beginning to take his clothes off. Jack kept his eyes locked on Ianto's form._

_"You guys said you were with the ESA, we didn't think you'd be willing to hide a few Time Agents from the time agency."_

_Ianto smiled. "We will let you stay, just know you'll have to pull your weight around here." He pulled a bottle of lube out of Jack's trousers. _

_Jack narrowed his eyes. "How'd you know that would be there?"_

_Ianto shrugged. "Lucky guess." He got back on the bed and straddled Jack's thighs._

_"I think I could enjoy being your prisoner," Jack teased as Ianto prepared himself._

_"I do aim to please," Ianto breathed as he lined Jack's cock up with his entrance. "So to clarify, this is where I want it to be," he moaned as he lowered himself down._

_Jack let out a soft moan in return. _

_Ianto bent down and captured the man's lips. He was trying not to lose control as he moved on top of Jack. He was trying to keep from letting his emotions take over. The moment felt surreal. He had imagined that he would have to wait 200 years before he was able to lay with Jack again, so the fact that he was with him again and it had only been twelve years was a wonderful gift, one he intended to cherish. He wondered if he could arrange further encounters in his future without disturbing the timelines. _

_It surprised Ianto when Jack finished first, but it was to be expected when he thought about it. Mortal Jack didn't have as much stamina as immortal Jack and second life Ianto had more stamina than first life Ianto. It was Jack's moans that sent Ianto over the edge._

_"I like you," Jack exclaimed as they bath tried to catch their breaths. _

_"I like you too," Ianto smiled looking deep into the other man's blue eyes._

_"I feel sleepy."_

_"That's the sedative. Don't worry you'll be fine." Ianto grinned. He'd had Zan put some in the food, just in case._

_"Oh…" Jack mused and then he drifted off to sleep. It was only then that Ianto allowed himself to cry._


	7. Chapter 7

AN: I love this chapter and thanks to Taamar it is done. Yay!

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Warnings: Usual suspects.

Rating: MA

**_Ianto's Very Own Spaceship._**

_It didn't take long for Ianto to realize there were things about mortal Jack that drove him crazy. For one thing, while immortal Jack was a flirt, mortal Jack was more of one. By the end of the first week Jack had had everyone on the ship except Lisa. Ianto figured it was because every time she looked at Jack she would remember how terrifying it had been to have a giant reptile attack her. _

_The only thing that kept Ianto sane was that Jack seemed to prefer him above all the others. It was to be expected, of course. Ianto already knew how to best please the man, and took great joy in doing so. _

_"I don't remember inviting you to my room," Ianto grinned as he shut the door to his small space after he had finished his shift in the bridge. Cy had to sleep sometimes. _

_"Oh, well, I felt like I needed to be punished," said Jack, leering and stretching his arms over his head, which caused Ianto to look over the naked man on his bed with interest._

_"What have you done?" Ianto asked._

_"Seduced your whole team," Jack replied._

_"Except for Lisa," Ianto chimed._

_"Except for Lisa. She doesn't count, though. I don't think she's interested in sex at all."_

_"I can assure you that's not the case." Ianto laughed._

_"I'll have to up my game then."_

_"No, you will stop trying." Ianto demanded._

_"Spoil sport."_

_Ianto frowned in a playful way. "Didn't you say you wanted to be punished?"_

_Jack nodded. _

_"I think a good punishment would be to tie you to the bed and deny you the rest of the night."_

_Jack shook his head._

_"Oh, then what would you suggest?"_

_"That belt looks promising."_

_Ianto got on the bed and straddled Jack's thighs. "Make love to me," he whispered. He needed Jack desperately. _

_Jack looked up at him in surprise. "That's more of a reward than a punishment, not that I'm objecting."_

_"Please," Ianto pleaded._

**Earth Australia 2005**

Ianto liked the Australia Rift; they all seemed to get along. No one ever questioned him, it was really like taking a vacation every time he went there. While he was treated with respect no matter which Rift he visited (Cardiff excluded), the Aussies seemed to go beyond mere respect; they treated him like a king.

"We love when you visit," Liam smiled. Ianto looked down at the leader who appeared to be a twelve year old and smiled.

"It's always a pleasure to be here. So are there any new things going on that I should be aware of?" asked Ianto as he entered the room Liam always had waiting for him.

"Well, we've had a bit of an issue…" Liam began. Ianto wanted to let out a groan. Australia wasn't supposed to have issues.

"What would that be?" Ianto said hiding his utter disappointment with class.

"Well we have a troublesome girl. She is just… well her heart is in the right place, Minister, but she keeps…"

"Keeps what?"

"Well she has known she was a Child since she was six. The only reason she knew because she kept sensing her seeker and following the woman. She ran away from her home several times, always showing up here. So finally her mother had to be told…" Liam paused and looked up at Ianto to see if he was in trouble for letting the mother know. Ianto nodded so that Liam would continue. "So Aria, that's the girl's name, started coming here every day after school. As you can imagine, she's very well trained, especially for her age. She is smart and talented. Anyway the reason she's troublesome, is because she's bored."

Ianto grinned. Aria. Of course. "Well, I need a new PA, and I'm sure I can keep her out of trouble. Do you think she'd be interested?"

Liam narrowed his eyes. "I didn't know you ever had a personal assistant?"

"I've created the job, just now."

TW-TW-TW

"I don't know, it all seems like an over the top pick up line to me," Aria sighed from across the small dining table in Ianto's room.

Ianto laughed. He had just asked a young, beautiful girl if she wanted to travel with him to all the other rifts. It did sound like an over the top pick up line. "I can assure you it was not meant to sound that way."

Aria smiled slightly. "I've read up on you, you know. Well not really read, but I've asked everyone about you. I'm wondering if the rumors are true."

"What do the rumors say?"

"A few I know for certain are true: That your eyes are so blue they beacon people to you like a ship to a light house. That you are handsome beyond belief and that you're a perfect gentleman, except when you're not."

Ianto bit his lip. It was truer than she knew, he was no safe harbor, not for Aria. She'd be drawn to him and it would kill her, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. "And the other rumors?"

"Say you're waiting for your true love."

"Isn't everyone?"

"Yes, but the rumors say you've already found yours."

"I have," Ianto agreed. "He is out of reach though."

"I see. So your heart is taken?"

"I've had other lovers, besides him; I loved them deeply."

"So you're saying that if I traveled the world with you, and I fell for your blues eyes, you might love me deeply?"

"Yes."

**Earth London July 2006**

Ianto walked into Torchwood tower with one mission in mind. He needed the samples of 'Living Flesh' he knew was in the archives, and today was his last day to be able to get it. He made it past security easily enough, thanks to Adrian's make up techniques, and his biometrics granted him access to the archives. This wasn't his first trip to Torchwood London pretending to be his younger self, either; he had stolen many things. Of course, Adrian was the only one who knew about all those trips. Jason was privy to this one, though he didn't know what was going to happen by the end of the day. Aria was the only one who knew that; his wife, who looked beyond beautiful carrying his little girl, seemed to be able to read his mind.

Rose Tyler passed by Ianto in one of the lower corridors. She smiled sweetly trying to pretend that she belonged there. Ianto smiled back trying to pretend he belonged there as well. When he reached the room he knew the 'Living Flesh' was kept he saw little Ianto entering the room where he would remain safe though most of the upcoming battle, unconscious from an unknown cause. Ianto had always wondered what, exactly, had knocked him out that day so he decided to take a look.

Little Ianto was trying to get a box off the top shelf when Ianto looked in at him. He did have a nice ass, Ianto thought with pride. Little Ianto pulled the box down and peered into it and then turned to look at the door. The eldest Ianto only barely managed to move before he was spotted. He peered around the corner to take another look and that's when a rumble went through the whole building and a box fell from the top shelf and landed on little Ianto, effectively knocking him out.

"Hmm…" the older Ianto mused before heading to the room that held the 'Living Flesh' and then making his way out of the building as quickly as possible. Getting out was usually more difficult than getting in, but today was chaos; he seemed to be the only one not in panic mode as he walked briskly through the building. He was the only one there, of course, who knew he would survive.

**Earth Cardiff November 2006**

"There it is, Tad!" Bethan's little voice squeaked.

Ianto prepared the sedative for the giant reptile. "Okay run…" Ianto yelled at his daughter. The girl ran and the pterodactyl flew toward them. Ianto jumped and grabbed onto it in the same way Jack had (or would… time travel was confusing). Ianto injected the sedative into the animal with ease and then jumped off it before it hit the ground.

"Well, that was exciting." Ianto smiled down at his daughter.

She looked up at him with pure glee. "It was."

Adrian came running up behind them. "Oh god, I saw you in the air. Are you okay?"

"He's fine, Blondie," Bethan insisted.

Ianto looked down at his daughter. "Don't be so mean."

She shrugged.

Ianto gave Adrian and apologetic look. "Will you help us get her to the warehouse?"

Adrian nodded and helped Ianto heft the beast into the back of the vehicle.

"I don't want Ianto to work for Torchwood." Bethan pouted from her booster seat in the back of Jason's Land Rover. Ianto looked in the rearview to see the girl gently petting the pterodactyl.

"I agree," Adrian said.

"No one was talking to you," Bethan growled.

"Lily!" Ianto warned.

The car was silent for a moment.

"You told me to always do what I thought best. Said that it would all be up to me. Well I think it would be best not to have Ianto in Torchwood."

"This isn't up for discussion. As I've already said."

"Isn't up for discussion," Bethan mocked her father.

TW-TW-TW

"How long are you going to be mad at me, Jason?" Ianto asked as he set up the brand new coffee maker for his younger self. Getting the flat sorted for little Ianto had been bittersweet, the place was full of memories, good and bad, that hadn't happened yet.

"Until he isn't mad at me," Jason replied.

"Well that's hardly fair," Ianto said under his breath.

"I'm letting you live in my house along with you little wife. Isn't that enough?"

Ianto looked up at Jason. "I'm not mad anymore. I understand you now. He's young, he doesn't understand yet. He will."

"I can think of a way you could make it better…"

"Not happening." Ianto smiled.

"Can't blame a guy for trying."

"I could," Aria exclaimed coming into the kitchen, her baby belly as cute as ever. "Wish you could make me a cup of coffee." she smiled at her husband. Ianto returned the grin.

"I could give you a kiss, would that be good?"

"Oh god," Jason said in disgust.

Aria glared at him then looked back at Ianto. "I guess that'll do."

Ianto walked over to his wife and bent to capture her lips. He loved her. His gentle affection for her in his first life had grown to profound respect in his second, but he had been unsure how to turn that into the sort of love that created a marriage. In the end, Aria had taken it out of his hands. She was never shy about her feelings.

"Alright, I gotta go, Ianto's supposed to be at Lily's in about thirty minutes. I want to be there to greet him." Jason announced, causing the lovers to break their gentle kiss.

"Okay," Ianto nodded, "We'll be sure to be out of here before you come back."

"Oh… he's gonna let me come back here with him. That's promising."

"I didn't say that," Ianto called after the man that was already retreating out the door. "Oh well, he'll figure it out."

"So you want to make love in your old flat before we leave?" Aria grinned.

Ianto looked down at her. "You are a mind reader, Mrs. Miller."

TW-TW-TW

**Earth Cardiff January 4, 2007**

Adrian and Ianto sat across from each other at Jason's dining room table discussing the recent convention of Rift Children. Ianto hadn't been able to attend because Aria was so close to her due date that he had refused to leave her. Of course he knew that this wouldn't have been an issue, he was well aware of the day his daughter would be born. It didn't matter though. He was quite willing to lie to have more time with Aria.

"So, Aria is going to have the baby today," Ianto grinned.

Adrian looked up from his notes over the Berlin Rift meeting. "Does Aria know?"

"No, I wanted it to be a surprise."

"What time do you think this is going to occur? I'd like to plan my day."

Ianto shrugged. Jason came in the kitchen and sat down in the chair next to Adrian. "Your wife is insane. Did you know?"

"What did she do?"

"She's in my bathroom using my tub. What is wrong with your tub?" Jason snapped.

"It doesn't have the little stairs and it's tiny. She needs the extra room right now."

"She is singing in there too. Not real songs though, she is telling the baby to come out in various languages."

"Maybe she is unsure what language the fetus speaks," Adrian suggested with a smile.

"It's not a fetus it's a baby, and I want to evict it from my womb," Aria growled coming into the room she had on a pair of yoga pants and a tank-top, neither of which did anything to cover her protruding belly. "Iden, when is she coming?"

Ianto pushed his chair out and pulled Aria into his lap she tried her best to cuddle up next to him. He put a hand on her belly and smiled when he felt a small kick. "She likes it in there. It's warm and safe."

"But her mommy isn't happy," Aria pouted, "I want to hold her."

Ianto bent down so he could be closer to the baby. "Hear that, Ruby? You need to come out now so your mum can hold you."

"Well look at that, she is just like her father, doesn't listen," Jason chimed.

Ianto glared at Jason then softened his face and looked at his wife. "It won't be too much longer, I promise."

It was three hours later that Aria was lying in a hospital bed breathing through the pain.

"Do you want the epidural?" Ianto asked for the fifth time.

"No, I'm perfectly fine…" Aria grunted. Adrian came into the room at the end of the contraction.

"How's she doing," Adrian said, handing Ianto a cup of ice.

"Perfectly fine," Ianto smiled.

"Oh… okay," Adrian said sitting down.

"Is the baby here yet?" Bethan call coming into the room.

"Did you walk here by yourself?" Ianto chastised. She was perfectly capable to do it but a five year old girl walking through a hospital alone would gain a bit of suspicion.

"No, Jason is outside the door. He says baby birthing is for women."

"Good, he can protect us from the rare bear as we all sing around a fire!" Aria yelled. "Okay, drugs get me the drugs."

Adrian was walking out the door to go get the nurse before Aria finished her sentence.

An anesthesiologist came quickly thereafter and when the man had finished giving Aria the medicine she needed she was professing her love to him. It was nearly nine hours later that Aria was ready to push and everyone except Ianto was forced out of the room.

When Ianto heard his daughter cry for the first time he wept like a baby as well. She was so small in his arms. He was reminded of the baby he and Anna had lost so long ago, but he tried to push negative thoughts away and focus on the positive aspect of his perfect little girl. At her bluer than blue eyes and her dark brown hair, and while at first glance she could be said to be all Ianto's, her skin matched her mother's perfectly.

**_Ianto's Very Own Spaceship_**

_It had been thirteen months since John and Jack boarded the Ruby Jewel and they were making plans to leave it. Ianto wasn't happy, for one because he would have to wipe Jack's memories, and for another because he had to trust that John would keep his word. He had discussed with John the importance of Jack not remembering this time. John seemed to understand, and Ianto hated putting the fate of the universe in the man's hands, but he had no other choice. _

_They docked at a station just beyond Aria's planet. Ianto and Jack rented one of the many hotel rooms the station had to offer. It wasn't much bigger than Ianto's room on his ship but it seemed more private, and was certainly more luxurious. Despite his surroundings and company, though, Ianto was not happy. What really upset Ianto was that he couldn't even bring himself to tell Jack that this was the end. He had even gone as far as setting up a time to meet up in the near future, knowing it was a lie._

_Ianto spent the night wrapped in Jack's arms. In the morning he woke before Jack to ready the syringe with his own special kind of retcon. He hadn't quite worked out how to get it in pill form, and he was pretty sure he hadn't gotten the dosage right, but he hoped it would only erase the last fifteen months or so from Jack's memory._

_Jack woke just as Ianto had placed the syringe on the side table. "Hey you, been awake long?" he grinned._

_Ianto smiled at him. "I'd wait forever for you." he said._

_"Would you."_

_"Yep," Ianto replied, grasping Jack's hand. "I love you."_

_Jack's eyes went a bit wide. "You do?"_

_Ianto nodded. _

_"I love you too," Jack exclaimed, and Ianto felt tears come to his eyes._

_"I know," He sobbed, then quickly, before he could change his mind, grabbed the syringe and injected it into Jack's arm. "I'm sorry."_


	8. Chapter 8

AN: Taamar thank you so much. This chapter is awesome because of you.

I have so many things happening these next four days that I don't know how much writing I will be able to get done. So next chapter really might not be ready until next Wednesday.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Rating: MA

Warnings: The usual suspects.

**_The Planet of the Gods._**

_It had been nearly seven years since Ianto left Jack for the second time, Ianto had given his ship to Lisa and had become reclusive. He worked in a lab with Aria's current husband Ryker. They had several projects, but Ianto's main focus was his work with 'Living Flesh'. He had figured out that this was how he was going to save Tosh and Owen. _

_The stuff was amazing. With the right amount of manipulation it could form into anything. It was hard for Ianto to keep from getting a bit of a god-complex, which was ironic when he considered the fact that he referred to the planet he lived on as 'The Planet of the Gods', despite its lack of grapes. _

_He'd started with small rat-like creatures that inhabited the small planet. Aria had not enjoyed that part at all simply because the things had gotten loose and ran through the house, and it had taken them two weeks to round all the pests up. Aria had closed down all experiments for three days. It had taken Ianto, IJ, and Ryker all giving the woman puppy dog eyes at the same time to get her to give them the keys to the lab again._

_The planet itself was in the midst of a civil war between the Rift Children and the race of humanoids that inhabited the planet before the rift opened and started dropping Children. The war, predictably, was over religion. To the locals the Rift Children were considered demons, their un-ageing nature being proof that they were unnatural, so they were doing everything they could to rid the planet of all of them._

_There had been casualties on each side. Ianto had lost yet another person he cared for because of it; Cy, the man who had piloted the Ruby Jewel, and had become a dear friend had been blown up by one of the inhabitants. It had been a painful loss, and Ianto hoped the man was having a wonderful third life. _

_Ianto felt like no one was winning the war. But no one ever really wins wars._

**Earth Cardiff Mid-January 2007**

Ianto was rocking Ruby in the chair in her nursery. Aria had just finished feeding her and Ianto had sent his wife to bed for some much-needed sleep.

"Hey," Jason said quietly as he walked into the room. Ianto looked up slightly.

"Hey," Ianto replied.

"So, umm… I was with the Peruvian ambassador…"

"And he let you know about a rebellion?" Ianto said, cutting him off.

"I hate when you do that," snapped Jason.

Ianto carefully got up and put Ruby in her cot. "Let's call Lavender and discuss it. I'm assuming you have the names of the Children involved?"

Jason nodded.

They walked down the hall to see Aria emerge from the room she shared with Ianto. "What's going on?"

"Nothing dear, go back to sleep," Ianto said.

Aria looked at Jason. "What's going on?"

"We have a bit of a rebellion on our hands," Jason answered. Ianto gave Jason a dirty look.

Aria looked back at Ianto. "That seems like significantly more than 'nothing' to me."

"Yeah, but you need to sleep, so go on," Ianto said pointing at the door to their room. Aria rolled her eyes and walked down the hall toward the stairs. "No one listens."

"Probably has a lot to do with karma," Jason quipped, then followed after Aria. Ianto sighed and followed after them both.

Adrian was already in the dining room when the three others got there. He had a laptop opened on the table and a printer set up next to it.

"What are you doing? You're supposed to be asleep," Jason asked. Adrian looked up at him, scowled, and then looked back down at the computer.

"I'm printing out the information Iden asked me to print out, and I am placing it in this manila folder, as he told me to do," Adrian replied.

"What is it with you two always sending us to bed? Blondes don't need more sleep than brunettes I promise," Aria stated, rolling her eyes and going to stand by Adrian. "Don't let the cave man get to you Adrian."

Jason ignored Aria's comments and looked at the papers Adrian was printing off. "Hey, this is one of the girls that was at the rebellion meeting." he mused. He looked up at Ianto and narrowed his eyes suddenly understanding what was about to happen. "No."

"Jace, he's ready."

"No. God, he hates me enough. I can't tell him he needs to go kill people."

"Wait, what?" Adrian said.

"Little me is going to be relocating those people." Ianto explained pointing to the papers on the table.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Adrian protested.

Ianto sighed. Why did everything have to be such an ordeal? "It's happening, so everyone needs to deal with it."

"If Ianto's relocating people so am I." Aria demanded.

"Fine," Ianto snapped not seeing any point in arguing with her, he knew she would win.

Three hours later Jason and Aria were heading to Bethan's house with all the information about the Reveal Rebellion. If Ianto remembered correctly, little Ianto was laying in Jack's arms. Ianto sighed as he looked down at the two week old baby he was once again rocking.

"She's perfect," Adrian whispered gently. Ianto looked up to see his best mate leaning against the door frame.

"Yeah, she is," Ianto agreed he gently got up and walked with her to his and Aria's room Adrian followed behind him. He gently placed Ruby in her bassinette then looked toward Adrian.

"Yan, who gave you hope? You came to me, who came to you?"

Ianto bit his lip. "Adrian, my life was a cake walk compared to yours."

"It's all relative," Adrian smiled.

Ianto shrugged and gave his daughter one last look before he went to his bed and pulled back the duvet and sheet. "She's my hope."

"But you didn't know her when you were him."

"He'll meet her soon. He won't know she is his at first, but he'll figure it out the day he meets me."

Adrian smiled. "I knew it. Jason owes me… well it's not important what he owes me… but I knew you and little you were going to meet."

Ianto smiled and then frowned slightly. "I'm going to lose Aria."

Adrian walked over to Ianto and gently wrapped his arms around Ianto's waist. Ianto bent his head down so he could rest it on his friends shoulder, taking the comfort Adrian was always there to give. "I'm sorry." Adrian said.

Ianto shook his head. "It's not your fault. She'll have a wonderful second life. I know because I met her during it. It's just… knowing. I hate knowing how little time we have. I hate having to keep it from her. "

Adrian tightened his grip. "I'll help you make it through."

"I know," Ianto replied.

Adrian pulled away and look up at Ianto. "When will I meet him?"

Ianto's gaze went to the floor. He didn't want to think about the pain his younger self was going to cause his best friend.

"Umm… eventually," Ianto answered.

"Thanks for the clarity," Adrian replied, rolling his eyes.

"You're welcome." Ianto looked at his bed and then back at Adrian. "Stay with me until Aria gets back?"

"Of course. I'll even let you blame it on me. Wouldn't want everyone knowing about your fear of being alone."

"It's not a fear… okay it is a fear. I'm glad I have a best mate who understands it, though," Ianto grinned. He slipped into the bed and Adrian got in beside him. Ianto wrapped a protective arm around his friend and soon they were both asleep.

TW-TW-TW

"Let's trade blondes," Jason said, nudging Ianto awake. Ianto opened his eyes to see Aria and Jason standing at the side of his bed. He then realized he was still cuddling Adrian, who was fast asleep in his arms.

Very gently he eased his arms from around his best friend. Jason just as gently picked up the sleeping Frenchman and carried him out of the room. Aria got into the bed next to her husband and snuggled up to him.

"He kept it warm for me," she teased.

"Yeah, that was the plan. He's considerate."

"Is he upset because Jason is sleeping around?"

"No, he doesn't have an issue with that. They have an understanding."

"So why was he in our bed?"

"Best mates cuddle."

Aria let out a little giggle. "I think you two are cute with your bromance."

"It's all me," Ianto teased.

"Speaking of you. It was so odd to have you sitting beside me this morning. Lavender got onto you for cussing. I thought I was going to die, it was so funny. I swear, I had to bite my tongue so hard I thought it was going to bleed. "

"Yeah, I realize now that she was just paying me back for all the times I've said it to her."

"Did you like me?" Aria asked.

"I thought you were beautiful, but you barely said a word to me."

"I know, I was nervous. It's a lot of pressure meeting your husband for the first time."

Ianto let out a small laugh. "Alright, you need to get a bit of sleep."

"Yeah, I agree," Aria yawned.

It was five minutes later that Ruby awoke again with a little whine. Oh, the joys of parenthood mixed with the responsibilities of protecting the Rift Children.

TW-TW-TW

"She's beautiful, David," Alice smiled. Ruby was three weeks old now and Ianto had snuck her out of Jason's mansion for her first visit with her Aunt Alice.

"I must agree." Ianto grinned looking at his sleeping baby.

"I'm just wondering if I ever get to meet her mother."

"Could be she doesn't have one," Ianto teased.

"Nope, you can't fool me, I know how babies are made. Plus I've seen the wedding pictures."

Ianto smiled. The wedding had been huge, and Aria had planned every part of it. It had been her perfect day and Ianto would remember it forever. The way she had looked walking down the aisle her hair flowing gently in the Australian breeze.

"You'll meet her, the only reason she's not here now is because she needed some sleep," Ianto insisted.

"She's lucky to have you. Joe left a month before Stephen was born, so I had to go it alone. Till I met you that is," Alice smiled.

Stephen came into the room holding a toy car. "See my new car, Uncle David."

Ianto knelt on the floor next to the young boy. "That's nice, Stephen."

"My dad sent it to me for my birthday," Stephen explained.

"That was nice of him. How's football going?" Ianto asked wanting to change the subject. He didn't particularly like Joe. He felt he was more of a father to Stephen than Joe had ever been, despite the platonic nature of his friendship with Alice.

"It's great. Will you be at my next game?"

"Have I missed a game yet?"

Stephen shook his head.

Ianto stood up, picked up the young boy, and looked at him straight in the eye. "I never will, either."

TW-TW-TW

Aria met Ianto at the door when he returned from Alice's house. She gave her husband a quick kiss then took the carrier that Ruby was in and traveled up the stairs. "I've missed her," Aria called back.

Ianto smiled and shook his head slightly. He began to follow her up the stairs but stopped on the second floor when he saw that the door to his old room was slightly ajar. Jason had refused to let anyone in there ever since little Ianto had run away. He didn't even let the maid in, Ianto was pretty sure Jason cleaned the room himself. Ianto went to the door and peered inside. Jason was sitting on the bed looking at a photo. Ianto cleared his throat to make his presence known.

"You can come in," Jason said, barely looking up from the picture. Ianto walked into the room and closed the door behind him.

"That's one of our better pictures," Ianto stated.

"He was so broken last night…"

"He's okay now." Ianto insisted.

"I don't see you as the same person, you know. I know it in my head, but my heart says otherwise. He needs my protection, and you don't."

"I will never outgrow my need for you Jason." Ianto insisted sitting down on the bed next to his guardian. "Sometimes I just want to lean on you the way I did then."

Jason put the picture frame on the side table and turned to face Ianto. "I love you. Do you know that?"

"Yes."

"When will he realize it?"

"Soon enough."

Jason got off the bed and grabbed the picture from the side table. He walked over to the book shelve and put it in its designated spot.

"Have you put a picture like that one in his flat yet?"

Jason looked over at him and shook his head. "I wasn't planning on doing that."

"Can I have that one? It's one of the memories that got me through."

Jason nodded. "Yeah, you know I could never deny you."

"I'm well aware." Ianto smiled getting off the bed and going to stand beside Jason. He wrapped his arms around him. "Thank you, Jace. I know it wasn't easy, all that you did for me."

Jason returned the hug and buried his face into the crook of Ianto's neck. "You saved me how could I not do everything in my power to help you," he mumbled against the Welshman's skin. Ianto gave into the familiar comfort that was Jason's arms. He was playing with fire and he knew it.

Jason began to gently kiss Ianto's neck. It took everything Ianto had to pull away. "I know two blondes who wouldn't appreciate it if we continued down that road."

"No, I only know of one who would care," Jason smiled. "And she's welcome to join in."

"He cares, Jason. Okay, he may not care about all the other random people, but if it was me he would care."

Jason shook his head, always in denial. "He secretly wants you."

"No, I can assure you he does not."

"I find it hard to believe that you two have never fucked."

"Why? Because you can't keep it in your pants, you assume that everyone else has the same problem? Jason, he's been my best friend for one hundred and fifty years, but it's just not like that between us," said Ianto. Sure, there had been that one kiss, but… no. He hoped Adrian hadn't told Jason about that. It was just too embarrassing.

There was a knock on the bedroom door. "Jason," Adrian's voice called. Ianto thanked all that was holy that he had stopped Jason before things went too far.

Ianto opened the door to see his best friend and then made his way out of the room. "He's in there," Ianto smiled. Adrian raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything else. Ianto knew that Adrian knew that there had been something between him and Jason. But they didn't speak of it. They had become adept at not speaking of things.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto remembered this day from his first life. He knew it was the day that Suzie had figured out the use of the 'risen mitten' and he knew that little Ianto would be at his flat tonight, which made going there a bit risky, but Ianto Jones loved to take risks.

He wasn't sure why he was sneaking up to the front door. Little Ianto was asleep in bed and if the neighbors saw him they would just think he was their nicely dressed neighbor and nothing more. Using spy techniques was more fun though, and good practice. He used his key to open the door, he did own the building, after all. He quietly shut the door behind him and looked around the flat. It was nice and tidy, and obviously unlived in. Ianto bit his lip. He remembered this time of his life, remembered spending all his time in the Hub with Lisa. It wasn't something he wanted to repeat.

He walked over to the book shelf and took out the picture he had packed away in his coat pocket. He placed it next to a picture of him with Lisa. He wished he could tell his younger self to let Lisa go because she was suffering, but he knew he couldn't do that. Before he left he peered into his bedroom. His younger self was sleeping deeply. Ianto knew it was because of all the rats he had had to find for Suzie. Rats. Always catching rats.

He was a bit shocked at how thin little Ianto was; it was no wonder why Owen had been concerned. He walked deeper into the room to look at his past face. His cheek held no signs of a scar. His chest, however, did hold the burn marks from Canary Wharf. Little Ianto stirred a bit and the elder Ianto took that as his cue to leave, and to do it quickly.

**_The Planet of the Gods_**

_It seemed as if the war was coming to an end. Most of the guerrilla warfare had ended and the leader of the Mowieka people had come to an agreement with the Child leader (Aria) and it seemed like all was well. Of course that should have been Ianto's first clue about what was about to take place._

_The day had started out ordinary. IJ and Ianto had gone for a run outside, then had gotten breakfast at the market place. Then Ianto had joined Ryker in the lab where they were still working with 'Living Flesh.' At lunch Aria had brought them sandwiches and then Ianto had gone out to the market again just for a bit of fresh air. It was there that it happened._

_Ianto recognized the device on the desperate looking man's chest immediately. It matched one that had been on John Hart. Ianto wasted no time pulling the man away from the crowd of people._

_"How long!" Ianto yelled at the man. _

_"It said twenty minutes. Can you save me?"_

_Ianto knew he could, but he would have to get to the lab. So Ianto had a dilemma. He could take the man to the house and risk the current lives of Aria and Ryker, (IJ it turned out couldn't die, much like Jack.) or he could get the man away from all civilization. He choose the later of the two options. Aria was happy in this life and he wouldn't let anything compromise it. He only wished that he could tell her goodbye._

_ He pulled the man close. "May you have a great next life." He whispered and then pressed a button on his watch that transported the pair. The bomb went off before he and the unknown man reached their destination. Jack had been right: getting blown up hurt like a bitch._


	9. Chapter 9

AN: I love this chapter. (Very much) Of course that means you'll all hate it. (J/K) Anyway, thanks to my very beautiful beta Taamar and her very beautiful decorating skills. Plus as always the fact that she can deal with my crazy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood

Warnings: Usual Suspects

Rating: MA

**_Okay, reading notes: The sections titled Jack will be Jack centric sections. They will involve his feelings during the events of Child of the Rift. They will be italicized so as not to confuse anyone, and will also serve as a bit of a review for the events of Child of the Rift. _**

**_Jack_**

_Jack stared at the sleeping form beside him. Jones, Ianto Jones. There was something about the Welshman that was familiar. He reminded Jack of the most important thing in life: the importance of actually living it. Jack had lost that over the years. _

_Not that Jack was a fool. He knew, of course, that Ianto Jones had an agenda. The man had lied his way into Torchwood 3, and Jack was sure he was hiding something big. He also didn't believe for a moment that he was the man's first male lover, Ianto was simply to adept for that to be true. And while Jack knew that he needed to uncover Ianto's big secret, he was willing to let the lesser deceit lie. It was probable that Ianto had lied because his previous relationship with a man had been… difficult. That would certainly explain why Ianto sometimes appeared to be afraid of Jack. _

_Ianto shifted beside him, then turned his head. "Are you watching me sleep?"_

_"It's a possibility," Jack grinned._

_"Why aren't you sleeping?"_

_Jack wasn't sure how to answer that. A part of him wanted to tell Ianto the truth, that he didn't need much sleep now that he was immortal, which was cruel really, but another part of him wanted to hold on to his secret, to not make himself vulnerable. Ianto had secrets of his own, surely he couldn't fault Jack for keeping a few?_

_"It's hard to sleep with such a gorgeous man lying beside me," he teased. Even in the dark Jack could tell Ianto was rolling his eyes. _

_"No one is making you stay," Ianto stated._

_Jack pushed Ianto on to his back and straddled him. "But no one is asking me to go either."_

_"I hardly think that's relevant, sir," said Ianto._

_Jack bent down and captured Ianto's lips. "There's that 'sir' thing again," he whispered when he broke the kiss. It wasn't that Jack minded it, it was actually kind of sexy the way the Welshmen said it, but Jack was concerned that the honorific wasn't truly meant for him. _

_Ianto bit his lip. "Sorry."_

_Jack shrugged and captured the Welshman's lips again. He let his hand travel south down the younger man's chest feeling the small burn marks on it. He continued to Ianto's side, which he squeezed it gently before heading to the hip. "You're so beautiful."_

_"Thank you," Ianto breathed._

_Jack ran his hand toward his original destination. Ianto was already hard. "This felt so good inside me." _

_Ianto let out a small whimper. "Yeah?"_

_"Oh yeah." Jack replied letting his hand fall between Ianto's legs and running a finger over his entrance. "But I really want this right now."_

_"Anything, sir."_

_Jack reached toward the side table and grabbed the bottle of lube that was there. "Are you sure?"_

_Ianto nodded. _

_Jack moved in the bed so that Ianto's ankles were on his shoulders than he ever so gently began to open him. The sounds Ianto made as Jack was entering him were nearly enough to push the immortal man over the edge. _

**Iden Miller **

"Good Morning Mia," Ianto smiled at the screen of his laptop. It was one a.m. for him and only nine p.m. for her. He had tried to arrange a better meeting time, but apparently she had had _more_ important things to do than meet with her boss. He never had this sort of issue with the Aussie Rift. Nope, the Americans and the Welsh were the only ones who gave him trouble.

"I'm sorry, okay, this is the only free time I had," Mia smiled in her Texas drawl.

"Of course…"Ianto yawned, too tired to chastise the girl, but seriously he was the minister he shouldn't have to rearrange his schedule to meet with her. He should tell her a time and she should be there. "So, this is about your ambassador for the Cardiff Rift."

"Oh, how is he? He's Gina's charge, did you know?"

"Yes." Ianto stated then he paused. Hearing Gina's name reminded him of how little time he had left with Aria.

"So…" Mia said, pulling Ianto out of the future and into the present.

"He's been relocated," Ianto said bluntly. No use in sugar coating it.

"Oh Christ! What happened?"

"It was ordered."

Mia's mouth opened in shock. "He was a sweet kid. Why was it ordered?"

"Mia, he was involved with a Rebel group that was making plans to expose us to the general public. All of the members of the group suffered or will suffer the same fate."

Mia bit her lip. "I assume you had proof."

Ianto nodded. Jason's word was proof enough for him.

"I understand. I'll tell Gina myself. She won't be happy. Might I suggest that the next convention be held in Cardiff? I'm sure Maxi will flip when he hears, you know how he likes to pretend he's in charge. "

"Yes, I know, and you are right. This year's convention will need to be in Cardiff. I don't see a way around it," Ianto sighed. He really didn't want to think about the convention.

"Will there be anything else, sir?"

Ianto shook his head. "Just that I will be making the rounds shortly; I'll let you know when I have a confirmed date. Adrian will be coming with me, and we would like to stay at his old place if that can be arranged." This was why they walked all over him, of course. He asked nicely instead of demanding. He'd have to work on that.

"Okay, will you be heading to the sanctuary as well? I may have to send Gina there after I tell her about her charge."

"I'm not sure, but most likely."

"How's the little one handling having to allow all those relocations?"

"Not well, I think she will be needing a break soon." Ianto said knowing it was the truth. His daughter wasn't holding up well at all. She was sad to have to relocate so many, especially since some of them were people she had considered friends. It reminded her of her own relocation, not that she could clearly remember it. Tara, one of Bethan's assistants, had informed Ianto that the ancient girl was having nightmares. He hoped they would stop when she moved to Florida. When she got there Ianto hoped the only thing she worried about was which sugary cereal to attempt to rot her teeth with.

A knock on Ianto's office door made him look away from his laptop screen. Jason stuck his head into the room. "Can we talk?"

"Umm… Yeah, just give me a few minutes to finish up with Mia here." Ianto answered. He knew that Jason had just returned from helping Ianto relocate the Peruvian ambassador, and he hoped this wasn't going to be too stressful a conversation. He was tired and now he was hyperaware of the few short months he had left with his wife, so all he wanted to do was go and cuddle up in bed with her.

"Is she naked?" Jason grinned.

"I feel like we need to have the sexual harassment talk again," Ianto sighed, shaking his head. Mia was laughing.

"Okay, Minister, I'll let you deal with him," Mia grinned, then ended the call with a small wave.

Jason sat in a chair next to the wall and sighed. "I'm going to ask you some questions that I have asked before and you have avoided. But tonight I need to know the answers."

"We'll see." Ianto replied, already dreading what the questions might be.

"Jack. What is he?"

"Many things… a man, for one, umm… used to be a time agent. Now he's the…" Ianto was attempting to avoid the question with a bit of humor. Not the best technique to use with Jason, but being as the only technique that was guaranteed to work was off limits (thanks to Adrian), he had to improvise.

"You know that's not what I fucking mean! Ianto says he feels some sort of rush thing when he touches Jack? Similar to what we feel being close to each other. Why?"

Ianto didn't know, but he wasn't about to admit it to Jason, so he decided to go with a bit of bullshit. "He has time rushing through his veins. We have rift energy rushing through ours. They are kinda the same… well not really, in a way I guess… you know because the rift energy is similar to time, but possible more like space… while time is more timey-"

"I fucking hate it when you do that. Can you maybe, just once, admit when you don't know the answer to something?"

"I do know the answer," Ianto lied. Never would he admit he didn't know the answer. He knew everything.

"Oh, that bit of babble you just spat out. That was the answer?"

Ianto nodded.

Jason shook his head. "Okay then, next question. What is Jack to you?"

"You know that…" Wasn't it obvious? Everyone else knew. There were rumors about it. Hadn't Jason heard them? Surely there was a sign that was above Ianto's head that said 'This bloke loves Jack Harkness.'

"No. I know that you've stalked the man. I know that you must have some reason for doing that. I know that Ianto is obsessed with him. What I don't know is why. Why is Ianto in Torchwood? Why did he want to go there? Did he or you… figure out something about Jack while at Torchwood One?"

Ianto sighed. All this time he had thought that Jason would have figured out on his own that little Ianto was hiding Lisa, but it seemed he hadn't. "Lisa is still alive. Little me has her hidden in Torchwood. She is a partial converted cyber-man."

"Harkness will kill him for that. Is that what's going to happen? I'm going to lose him…" Jason looked like he was about to hyperventilate. Ianto wondered if that was even possible for a Child in their second life.

"No," Ianto answered quickly to try and put out the fire had had just created.

"What then? He's just gonna let him off the hook?"

"I didn't say that," Ianto explained. Jack would not be letting little Ianto off the hook. Far from it.

"What, then?"

"It's complicated. Ianto will have to earn Jack's trust again, but he will. Jason, he has to stay in Torchwood. I know you don't like it, but that's just the way it is." Ianto explained.

"If I tell Lavender she will insist we remove him," Jason said in a threating tone that didn't reach his eyes. Ianto knew he wouldn't tell Bethan, all that would do would cause her more heartache, and neither of them wanted that.

"Threatening me, Jace? Nice. Oh…hold on, I do believe that I am in charge… Last time I checked that is. Little me is staying put. End of conversation." Ianto replied firmly.

Jason narrowed his eyes. "You never answered the question. What is Jack Harkness to you?"

"My fixed point," Ianto stated, his tone almost sad.

"What in the hell does that even mean?"

"It means I love him, Jason."

"Don't be ridiculous."

Jason was always in denial about something, be it the fact that Adrian loved him, or the fact that there had been aliens involved in the moon landing. "I love him Jason, and he is learning to love me right now."

"You can't have him though, even when Ianto goes. Harkness is a threat to us…"

"I'm well aware!" Ianto shouted. He didn't want to tell Jason his plans yet. He hadn't told anyone. Adrian knew that he was in love with Jack but he didn't know that Ianto was going to risk everything to tell the man. He knew that he was going to be taking a risk. When Jack found out there was every chance he would have the same reaction that he did when Ianto told him the last time. The fear was always in the back of Ianto's mind, threatening to overtake him. What made him better than the Children involved in the reveal rebellion if he was willing to risk the entire Rift Child population because of his love for one man?

Jason sighed. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault, Jason," Ianto replied, shaking his head and looking down at his hands. It was no one's fault.

Jason got up, came around the desk, and pulled Ianto's chair out before kneeling in front of him. "Am I your second choice? I could handle it, you can tell me."

Ianto ran a hand through Jason's hair. He wasn't sure if the man was serious or not. "There isn't a queue of people Jason. It's not some kind of race for my heart."

"I miss you," Jason whispered.

"Stop." Ianto pleaded. He had had a couple of slip-ups with Jason over the last twenty-five years and he knew the best way to prevent them was to recognize when Jason went from 'just his friend' mode to 'I love you more than cake' mode.

Jason grabbed Ianto's hand and kissed it. "I know you can love more than one person at a time, because I do." Ianto knew that was true already. It was the intensity of the love that really mattered.

"Who?" Ianto asked, praying one of the answers was Adrian.

"You and Ianto."

Ianto sighed. "You love Adrian."

"I care for him."

Ianto pulled his hand away. "Is there anything else you needed to discuss with me? Because I would like to go to bed. " He didn't like to hear that Jason wasn't yet accepting the feelings he so obviously had for Adrian. His best friend deserved better than a man who wouldn't even admit he loved him. Ianto was aware of the irony.

"Lucy McCampbell, Sarah Higgins guardian. I am going to relocate her myself. Do you want to help?"

"Oh, you've just made that decision have you?" Ianto deadpanned happy for the change of subject, even if it was a depressing one.

"Yeah, I did, and I'm not going back on it."

"Oh, okay… I'll help then."

"So, you already knew that I was going to relocate Lucy, and not Ianto."

Ianto nodded. When would everyone learn that he knew everything?

There was a knock on the door and Jason quickly straightened up and leaned against the desk, trying to appear innocent. It didn't work.

"Come in," Ianto called. Adrian stuck his head in.

"Hey I saw the light on thought you might want some tea." Adrian explained coming the rest of the way into the room holding a silver tea tray. "I didn't know you were home, Jason," he continued through tight lips. Ianto wondered if Jason could tell the Frenchman was upset.

"Haven't been here long." Jason explained. He came around the desk and relived Adrian of the tea tray before placing it on the mahogany desk.

"It's a good thing you don't like tea then, isn't it?" Adrian smiled tightly. He wondered if his friend had been eavesdropping, that would explain why he was upset.

Adrian sat down in one of the chairs opposite Ianto's desk and Jason sat in the other one. There was a silent tension in the air. Ianto was about to excuse himself when Adrian decided to break it. "So how did Ianto's latest relocation mission go?"

"Amazing. He snapped a man's neck," Jason said with pride.

"Something is wrong with you," Ianto teased, rolling his eyes.

"I thought Polo was in his first life? Wasn't he injecting them with Weevil sedative?" Adrian asked, shifting in his seat. Ianto could tell he was uncomfortable.

"Yeah, but Polo called him a sex toy," Jason laughed. Ianto glared at him.

Adrian looked at Ianto. "That must've been difficult. Snapping someone's neck."

"It was hot," Jason grinned. Ianto wished the floor would swallow him. Poor Adrian.

"I think we're finished here. Thank you for the tea, Adrian." Ianto smiled and stood, trying to pretend like he didn't notice the sadness in his best friend's eyes.

"Not a problem," Adrian nodded.

Two minutes later Ianto crawled into bed with Aria. He wrapped her in his arms and wished that life were could be less complicated.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto was packing his suit case, he and Adrian would be heading out on their rift tour in the morning. They would be spending a few days at each rift. Ianto was also going to go to the Child sanctuary in Florida. He needed to set up a place for Bethan. She needed a break, and he knew soon she would be asking for one. He was also going to drop by a secluded rift in Denver. He'd be sending Tosh and Owen there, and he wanted to look into employment and real estate in the area.

Aria was sitting on their bed and she was pouting. "I want to go with you," she tried. Ianto sighed; they'd had this discussion before, and she simply wouldn't let it go. He wanted Aria with him, too, but he needed her in Cardiff. Little Ianto would need her to be in Cardiff.

"You need to stay with Ruby," Ianto explain again.

"She can come with us. She's small, she won't take up much room."

"Aria, she's four weeks old. She doesn't need to be going on a five week tour around the world."

"I'm her mother, I think it is my decision what she needs!"

Ianto looked at Aria and raised his eyebrow. She was being ridiculous.

"Don't you raise your eyebrow at me Iden Miller; I don't want to be left here alone with Jason. What will I do all day?"

"You could go to Lavender's and help out?"

"I'm going to miss you," Aria pouted. Ianto came and sat beside his wife on the bed.

"I'm going to miss you, too," he assured her, putting an arm around her back.

"You're going to miss that six week mark," she continued. Ianto grinned. Aria had the six week mark on the calendar. It read 'We can have sex now.'

"Aha! I didn't realize that this was all about the sex. You should have opened your argument with that," Ianto teased.

Aria pushed his shoulder. "You're a bastard sometimes."

Ianto nodded and then stole a kiss. "And yet you still love me." He pushed her down onto the bed and pressed his body against hers.

A knock on the bedroom door brought the lovers out of their make-out session. "Go away!" Aria yelled.

Ianto giggled then pressed his lips back against his wife's. Her fingers went to his hair, gripping it firmly. The knock came again.

Aria let out a small feral growl. "I bet it's Jason. Fucking bastard, he always knows when we are being intimate."

Ianto sighed. "We can't go any further than this anyway."

"I'm sure we can come up with something," Aria insisted, placing a hand over Ianto's groin.

He grabbed her hand and kissed it. He wasn't going to go against doctor's orders. The knock was louder this time. "Alright," Ianto barked at the door.

Aria laid fully on the bed, "You know what they say, there's no rest for the wicked. You should reflect on that a bit," she grinned.

"Ha ha," Ianto deadpanned, walking to the door and opening it.

Jason stood on the other side. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything," he smiled.

"You are, but go on," Ianto replied with irritation.

"I've got Lucy in the basement."

"Who's Lucy?" Aria questioned.

"None of your business," Jason called.

Ianto looked back at his wife. "Just another Rebel."

"Oh," Aria said obviously no longer interested. She got off the bed and snuck by her husband. "I'm gonna go check on the baby."

"Good," Jason mumbled.

"Watch it, cave man!" Aria warned. Ianto liked the nick-name Aria had given Jason. Jason, on the other hand, hated it.

"I wasn't a cave man, for the millionth fucking time!" Jason shouted after the girls retreating form.

"Whatever."

Jason looked at Ianto, "She's always so nasty to me."

"Oh, right, because you're just the sweetest person alive," Ianto deadpanned.

Jason narrowed his eyes. "Anyway, come help me with Lucy?"

Ianto nodded. It would be best to get it over with as soon as possible.

Lucy was set up in the same room that Ianto would eventually be using to relocate John Hart. Ianto, in a moment of dark humor, decided to name the room the 'relocation center.'

"Minister, what is this about? Your brute friend has dragged me here, and tied me to this chair. Without giving any reasons." Lucy bellowed.

"A few things Lucy. One, why didn't you train your charge?"

"What are you talking about? I did."

Ianto laughed out loud. "No dear, you didn't. She only knows two languages. She has no combat training, no weapons training. Nothing at all."

"Well, she's a pretty girl. I didn't think she would need all that stuff." Ianto's mouth open in shock and he looked at Jason.

"She's got a point," Jason teased. Ianto rolled his eyes then looked back at the accused.

"It's a requirement! It's not an option! When you are given a charge there are things you must teach them."

"I taught her not to trust authority!"

Jason cleared his throat. "May I ask you something, Lucy? Where is Sarah?"

Lucy looked taken aback, "I don't know, in school maybe."

"She was relocated and you didn't even know!" Jason growled. Jason knew where each of his charges were and he talked to them at least once a week. This woman obviously didn't have Jason's dedication.

"What? Why?" Lucy stammered.

"Because of her involvement in the Reveal Rebellion," Ianto explained.

"The what, now?" Lucy chimed, playing dumb (badly).

Ianto had had enough. "Lucy McCampbell, you are being sentenced to immediate relocation due to your involvement in the Reveal Rebellion and because of your lack of commitment to your charge. May your next life be happy," he said, pulling his gun from his trousers. He put it to her head. "Would you like to have any last words?"

"The world will figure it out one day! We can't stay in hiding forever, we are superior we should…" Ianto and Jason never did get to hear what they should do because Ianto had become annoyed and pulled the trigger. He was so tired of Rift Children that thought they were better than normal humans.

Ianto turned to see Jason making a pouting face. "What?"

"I wanted to do it."

Ianto just rolled his eyes. "I'm very sorry, next time I have to relocate someone I'll give you the gun," he spat. It wasn't as if it was some kinda reward. It was difficult to do, which was why he always tried to do it instead of letting someone else.

"I'm sorry I know you hate it," Jason replied looking down at the body. Ianto was sure the man had seen much worse in his day.

"Which is why I do it. If I can save you, or Adrian, or any one from having blood on their hands, I will."

"With that being said, now's when you say we need to clean it up?"

"Yep."

**_Jack_**

_"Ianto?" Jack called. He was in the archives and while he would never admit it, he was pretty sure he was a bit lost. Actually he wasn't even sure where he was was even considered the archives anymore. There were no longer any shelves filled with boxes, or filing cabinets, and he had passed the last separate archival room a long way back. Now he was just in a dimly lit corridor that held no door, but did have a few open walls the led into similar looking corridors. "Ianto?" he tried again._

_Thankfully the Welshman came around the corner at that moment. "You called, sir?"_

_"What are you doing down here?" Jack asked._

_"Setting up rat traps," Ianto replied. It seemed logical enough, which was why Jack had a feeling it was a lie. Jack didn't focus on the lie issue long, the Welshman looked too hot with a bit of dirt on his button nose. His shirt was a bit disheveled as well. Jack wanted to rip it off him. "Oh, well… the others have all gone home…"_

_"And you decided to come find me, and you got lost?" Ianto mused._

_"I did not get lost. I know my way around this place, been here longer than you, I might add."_

_"I see. So you're not lost at all? Why don't you lead us back, then?"_

_"Don't wanna," Jack pouted._

_"Why?"_

_Jack grinned. "For one, I feel the need to take you up against that wall, and then I would like to stare at your ass while you lead us back to the main Hub."_

_"I'm dirty." Ianto pouted._

_"I like it dirty," Jack assured the younger man, pushing him to the wall and crashing their lips together. All thoughts of what Ianto might have been doing left his head, replaced by thoughts of what Ianto could be doing. _

_Ianto pulled away from the kiss. "I really am dirty though. Just let me go shower, and then…" Jack didn't get hear what would happen after the shower because he pressed their lips back together. Slowly Jack began to feel Ianto's need pressing against his own. He pulled away from the kiss and dropped to his knees his hands going straight to Ianto's trousers. Ianto looked down at him with lust-blown eyes._

_"How about I take care of this. Then we can both shower?" Jack breathed. Ianto nodded._

_Jack swiftly pulled down the already unbuttoned trousers then grinned up at Ianto. "You're not wearing any pants?"_

_Ianto gave a face of innocence. "I wasn't aware."_

_"You mean you've been walking around all day with nothing under these trousers."_

_Ianto nodded and smiled mischievously. _

_Jack felt a new wave of arousal burst through him; Ianto Jones was full of surprises. With a growl, the immortal wasted no time taking Ianto's erection into his mouth. He felt Ianto's hand gently grip his hair and he could hear the man's soft moans of pleasure. Jack decided then and there that he would never be able to get enough of Ianto Jones, and that scared the shit out of him._


	10. Chapter 10

AN: My beta is amazing. Taamar, thanks so much! This is our 20th chapter to work on together. (Seems like only yesterday)

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Warnings: Usual

Rating: MA

Spoilers: Everything Changes (If you squint)

**_Jack_**

_Jack was surprised to find Ianto asleep on the couch. He looked peaceful in his sleep, and Jack wondered what the man was dreaming about. Ianto appeared to have lost at least ten pounds since joining Torchwood 3, which worried Jack. It was also evident on the Welshman's face that he had cried himself to sleep. Jack knew that Ianto had many things to cry about. The fact that he had been exposed to a Dalek was bad enough, Jack still had his own nightmares about them, but Ianto had also survived the Cybermen, as well as losing Lisa, his girlfriend. Jack knew all too well what it felt like to lose a lover; it was a pain like no other. He was surprised at how well the man was holding up. The immortal gently ran a finger along one of the tear streaks on Ianto's face and the Welshman shifted slightly but didn't wake._

_With a small smile and a sigh Jack sat down in front of the couch. He watched Ianto's chest move in time with his gentle breathing and wondered why Ianto hadn't just come down to sleep with him in his bunker. It was possible that the young man felt weak at having all these emotions, but Jack didn't see weakness. He saw humanity. The older man had been watching silently when Ianto let out a little whimper. It was obvious that he was having a nightmare, so Jack gently stroked the younger man's hair and cooed softly. Ianto settled back down and soon he was back to peacefully sleeping._

**Iden Miller Aka… Ianto**

"Honey, I'm home!" Ianto called walking into the foyer of the mansion. No one answered.

Adrian came in behind him. "You could try using the intercom?" he suggested.

"You'd think she'd be waiting here for me." Ianto pouted. "I told her when we would arrive."

"Maybe she's out?"

Ianto looked at Adrian then put his bag down and walked to the kitchen and straight through it to the garage. Aria's car was gone. Annoyed, Ianto marched back into the house.

"She's not here."

Adrian was leaning against the counter in the kitchen. "If only there was some sort of device that could be used to contact her in some way," he said dryly.

Ianto narrowed his eyes as he pulled out his cell phone. "Smart ass," he muttered under his breath. He began to dial Aria's number, but Jason came in before the call connected and Ianto could tell he was angry, so he decided that his call to Aria would have to wait.

Adrian's eyes lit up. "Hey," he chimed, but Jason ignored him and looked instead at Ianto.

"Ianto's not returning my calls," he barked angrily. "Yes, we got in a fight, but he still has to answer my phone calls. I'm the second in command for Christ sakes. He has no understanding of chain of command. He disrespected me in front of Aria last night. Told me off for making her relocate people, and it wasn't even my damn idea. He is my charge, yet for some reason he thinks that just because…"

"Jason, where is my wife?" Ianto interjected before Jason finished that sentence. Adrian didn't need to hear it, whatever it was.

"She went to Lavender's… oh wait she changed her name again. It's Tink now. Anyway, Aria rudely said that she didn't feel safe here alone with me so she, the little crying machine, and Ianto left last night late."

Ianto wanted to growl in frustration. He just wanted to hug his wife and then try to get over his jet lag, but there was all this drama going on.

"Why don't you just go to bed and I will make sure Aria and Ruby are here when you wake up," Adrian suggested.

Ianto knew that Adrian was just as tired as he was. "You don't have to do that Adrian."

"I know. I want to. Now go to bed." Adrian ordered, pointing toward the hall that led to the main stair case.

"But…" Ianto began.

"Go," Adrian said in a voice that left no room for argument.

"Fine," Ianto smiled, putting his hands up in defeat.

The tired Welshman made his way to his room. He crawled into his bed and tried to go to sleep, only sleep refused come. Ianto tossed and turned for a good twenty minutes. As he did he tried to remember what little Ianto's fight with Jason had been about, but it had been so long ago for him. He remembered the green eyed man pinning him against the fridge, and he remembered that it had been some kiss. He turned and looked at the ceiling biting his lip. After going over the kiss against the fridge a few more times he decided to give up trying to sleep.

He went back down the stairs and toward the kitchen again only to stop in his tracks when he reached the entry. Jason had Adrian pressed up against the fridge in the exact same way that Ianto remembered Jason pinning him to it, only Jason had managed to get Adrian's tight jeans off him. Ianto knew he shouldn't be standing there watching. He knew he should turn and walk away, but it was like a train wreck and he couldn't tear his eyes off the scene.

It was obvious to Ianto that Jason was trying to relive the previous night through Adrian, and that pissed him off. His friend shouldn't be filling in for what Jason thought he really wanted. Adrian's eyes opened just as he let out a small moan. Ianto moved away from the door quickly. He would be speaking Jason about this, but he didn't want Adrian to know about it. The man would be mortified.

Ianto sighed slightly and went back up the stairs. Maybe sleep would come now, but he highly doubted it.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto awoke to the feeling of his wife's lips on his stomach. He let out a gentle moan and Aria began to move her kisses lower. Ianto put his hand in her hair gripping the blonde locks gently. He growled when she took him into her mouth, she was so good at making him come undone. He let himself enjoy the amazing things Aria could do with her mouth before gently pulling her up so her could capture her lips. She moaned into the kiss and Ianto flipped their positions so that Aria was pinned beneath him, "I've missed you," he breathed, breaking the kiss.

"I've missed you too," Aria rasped, bending her head up to try and capture Ianto's lips again. He pulled back.

"How much?" he teased, grinding into her gently.

"So much," she moaned wrapping her legs around her husband's torso, pulling him back down and into another scorching kiss. Ianto growled into it and then pulled her gently closer before swiftly entering her. She let out another moan and bucked up into him.

The coupling was frantic and to the point. The two hadn't slept together for nearly three months and they both needed to reconnect, and do it quickly. Ianto breathed in his wife's scent and left his mark on her neck. He moved inside her and brought her to completion three times. He felt so much better afterwards.

"You weren't here when I came home," Ianto stated as they both laid in the afterglow.

Aria shifted. "I've never seen Jason that mad. I was a little scared."

Ianto sighed as he played with a lock of Aria's hair. "He would never hurt you, I can promise you that."

"You put too much faith in him. He tossed Ianto to the ground like he was a bag of potatoes and nothing more."

"I said he wouldn't hurt you. I didn't say anything about me," Ianto murmured trying to keep his voice light. Truth was, he knew what everyone thought of Jason. It was easy to judge when you were on the outside looking in. It had also been easy for Ianto, before he knew the whole truth. He now knew that Jason's outburst the night before had come from a feeling of being out of control.

Ianto knew the truth now of course; he understood why Jason needed and craved total control. He had died in a battle of sorts, but it hadn't been for his king. It had been in defense of himself. It was common in the battlefield for the knights to all sleep with each other. With no women readily available it was an acceptable practice, but Jason had taken the acceptable practice a step too far when he fell in love with a younger man.

The other knights had ridiculed Jason when his love affair was brought to their attention. Jason became the plaything of all the other men, and his status as 'demi-god' was taken from him and he became the common whore. The worst part was the younger man he had fallen for had used him just as the other men had. Of course Jason had no idea that Ianto knew this, Adrian had told him in complete confidence, but it made Ianto understand why Jason always needed control.

"He's a hard man to understand, Aria, but he is a good man. A trustworthy man." Ianto insisted.

"If you say so," Aria yawned. Ianto turned to look at the clock. It was nearly lunch time.

"Where's the baby?"

"With Adrian."

Ianto pulled himself out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom. He wanted nothing more than to fall back to sleep, but he knew that if he did that he would never get over the jet lag. So he got in the shower and washed the smell of sex from his skin. Aria joined him and he took care to wash it off her skin too. Twice, since he ended up taking her against the tile wall.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto found Jason in his bedroom while the man was sleeping. Of course Jason was tired; he had spent all night filling up little Ianto's voice mail and texting him constantly, then he had used Ianto's best friend to play out the scene from the kitchen. That would tire anyone out. Ianto entered the room and locked the door behind him.

"Jason!" Ianto shouted, effectively waking the sleeping man and causing him to fall off the king sized bed. He held no pity for the man's exhaustion.

"What the fuck, Iden!" Jason cursed as he clamored back onto the bed.

"We need to talk."

"Let's do it later," Jason grumbled turning onto his stomach and burying his head under his pillow.

"No, now, and it's an order!"

Jason let out an obvious sigh and sat up in the bed. He narrowed his eyes at Ianto, "Alright Minister, I'm listening."

"I saw you this morning with Adrian."

"Okay, so?"

"Who were you really with this morning? I know that it was Adrian, but who were you pretending it was?"

"Ianto." Jason replied without an ounce of shame in his voice.

"Do you think that's fair to Adrian?"

"He doesn't ca…."

"Yes he does! He loves you, and you treat him exactly like shit…."

"Don't presume to know a damn thing about my relationship with Adrian."

"I don't, but I do know everything about him. He is fragile. He needs you to love him, and you pretend not to."

"I care for him."

"It isn't the same! He needs to hear the words…'

"Oh, I bet Harkness said them to you? No, I know that's not true, Adrian told me that Jack never did say it out loud. Even when you died!"

Ianto lunged at the man and soon the pair were fighting it out on the bed. Ianto got in a few good hits but ultimately it was no use, even though Ianto was stronger than he had been in his first life Jason was still able to overpower him. So soon he found himself pinned beneath Jason's body. The two stared at each other as their breathing began to return to normal.

"Adrian is not fragile. I can promise you that. You're not doing him any favors by pretending he is."

"You're going to cause him to have another breakdown."

"I prevent them!" Jason growled pulling Ianto away from the bed and slamming him back into it. "He needs me. He trusts me. And what goes on between us is none of your god-damned business."

Ianto still hated when Jason was right about things, and this was one of those times. It really was none of his business what went on between Adrian and Jason. He just wanted to protect his best friend. "You're right," the Welshman admitted quietly.

Jason smiled. "I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly. Could you say it again, just a bit louder?"

"Don't be a wanker." Ianto groaned.

"I don't think that was what you said."

"Jason, let me go."

"I really don't want to…" Jason whispered, leaning down and kissing Ianto's neck.

Dammit, Jason had switched modes quickly. "Jace, we can't…" Ianto began, only to be silenced by a searing kiss from Jason. Ianto felt his resolve wavering, as it usually did with Jason. Soon Ianto was returning the kiss with vigor, giving small moans and bucking his hips up to meet Jason's. He hadn't had a relapse with Jason in three years; he didn't think he would ever earn that five year chip at this rate.

Jason finally pulled away after several minutes. He released his hold on Ianto and got off the bed. Ianto let out a small whimper at the loss of contact. "I really do miss you," Jason murmured then quickly retreated to the bathroom. Ianto was happy that Jason had chosen to stop because he wasn't sure he would have. Actually judging by the tent in his trousers, he was positive he wouldn't have.

Ianto got off the bed and tired his best to straighten out his appearance. Saying that he felt guilty for what had just transpired would have been an extreme understatement. He sighed, then quickly made his way out of the room. He went down the stairs and straight toward the kitchen, intending to get a cup of coffee before going to see Bethan. Really that was just an excuse he was telling himself. He just needed to get out of the house, and find a place to cool off.

Unfortunately he ran into Adrian in the kitchen, and he was forced to act as if he hadn't just played tonsil hockey with Jason. He smiled casually and the two had a quick discussion about the next trip they would need to make while he worked the coffee maker. The Las Vegas Rift had acted as if they were hiding things during the three days that Ianto and Adrian had been there, so Ianto wanted to make a surprise visit to find out just what was going on.

After that little discussion Ianto excused himself and went to the garage where he got behind the wheel of his car and drove away. He wasn't sure where to go once he got on the open road. Somehow he just seemed to find his way to an old cemetery. He knew the layout well so it was easy to find Anna's grave. He knelt in front of her stone, giving a small look at the tiny one beside hers. It read: Ianto Gareth Jones Jr. the death date and the birthdate were the same. He let out a little sob and closed his eyes.

"I wish you were here, Anna. Every day I think about you. What would you have made of Jason? I know one thing… he would have loved you." Ianto said to the stone. He knew she wasn't there, he knew she couldn't hear him, but it was comforting none the less. He let out a gentle laugh then his face turned to a frown. "I'm still angry, you know. Not because you left me, but because you left Bethan. She needed her mother." He sighed gently, "I suppose it's easier though…. I can't imagine how messed up I would feel if I added another person I loved to the mix. Of course I'm sure you would have helped me through it. In your own little way, you always knew how to make me feel better. I failed you when it came to that, I suppose." He bent his head and started to cry gently. Talking to his long lost wife was intensifying his guilt rather than relieving it.

Suddenly he felt a familiar rush and he looked up to see Adrian standing beside him. The man knelt down beside him and wrapped an arm around him. Ianto leaned into his best friend's embrace. "Jason said you and he had a fight?"

"Yeah, it wasn't that big of a deal."

"Your tears say otherwise."

"I don't really want to talk about it right now, Adrian," Ianto confessed.

"Alright, how about this. We will walk through this cemetery and remember all the loved ones that we buried here. Then when we're done we go back to the mansion and we cherish the loved ones who are still with us?"

"Deal." Ianto agreed. Both men stood up and Ianto grasped Adrian's hand. "Let's say something that we remember about each of them."

Adrian nodded and looked toward Anna's grave. "Anna had the most beautiful hair."

Ianto smiled and nodded. "Anna kissed like a goddess."

Adrian shook his head and smiled. Ianto looked toward his son's grave. "Ianto Jr. had the bluest eyes," he said. Adrian gripped Ianto's hand harder. Then the pair turned to continue traveling down memory lane.

The next grave they stopped at was Perry Mouley. "If you say he was a good kisser this field trip will be over," Adrian warned.

Ianto giggled. "Perry loved children, which is what made him and excellent seeker."

Adrian nodded in agreement. "He once saved me from one of Bethan's many pranks."

"I'm glad she out grew that pranking stage."

"Me too, being as I am the only one she ever pranked."

The two laughed gently and moved on. Ianto was starting to feel a bit better, though when they came to Brody's grave his mood threatened to shoot back down. It had been pure luck that another Rift Child had found Brody's body before Torchwood and they had been able to have a proper funeral for him. Ianto had put guards around the grave just in case Torchwood tried to take the body, but they hadn't. Ianto had seen Jack near the grave a time or two, which made him wonder how attached his two past lovers had been to each other.

"Brody had spirit," Adrian said.

"Yes he did," Ianto agreed.

"And a nice ass," added Adrian. Ianto looked at his best friend with wide eyes. "What?" Adrian questioned.

Ianto let out a little laugh. "He did. You're right."

TW-TW-TW

**_Jack_**

_Jack instantly regretted sending Ianto away after their fight, but he couldn't believe for one minute that Suzie was a murderer. That's something he would notice, wasn't it? Of course, if he was honest with himself here, lately the only thing he had been noticing was Ianto Jones, and that was an issue. He didn't need to be falling in love; he knew how those things ended for him. No…this fight had been for the best. If he ended things now then he would be able to save himself from the heartache that would come when Ianto left him, because one way or another they all left him._

_He changed his mind the moment he tasted the decaf that Ianto put in front of him the next morning. No way would he be able to keep his hands off a Welshman who knew how to effectively get his point across without even saying a word. _


	11. Chapter 11

AN: My beta is an amazing person, and she is most certainty one of the best of them and lots of things happen to her.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood. (But Jason is mine,J)

Warnings: Usually stuff.

Rating: M….

Spoilers: Everything Changes, Day one

**_Jack_**

_Jack watched as Gwen Cooper got in her car and pulled away. He was trying to figure out what had stopped him from trying to lure her into bed. He knew he could have regardless of her boyfriend, but something held him back. Well, someone. He wasn't usually a one person kinda guy, but he didn't want to risk things with Ianto. Twenty-first century humans still weren't as open with their sexuality as people from the fifty-first century were. If being with Ianto meant that he had to be just with Ianto, then that's what he would do. He had done it in the past, he could do it now. With a sigh for his missed conquest he began to make his way back to the Hub._

_Ianto was asleep on the bed in Jack's bunker. Jack grinned at the naked gift. He wanted nothing more than to kiss the beautiful flesh, but he didn't want to wake Ianto just yet. The Welshman had had a very busy evening, and had handled it with his usual grace. He'd helped clean up after the mess Suzie had created and he had accepted Jack's immortality with barely a flinch. The man had more than earned his rest. Jack climbed back up the ladder and into his office. He poured himself a scotch and thought about Suzie. If only he had taken Ianto's advice, maybe - no, he couldn't think that way; it would get him nowhere. Plus he didn't have enough scotch to deal with the guilt it would cause._

**Iden Miller**

"Well, it's not what I expected, I'll tell you that," Ianto sighed sitting down beside Adrian on the bed in their hotel room. They were in Vegas staying at the Paris Casino and Ianto had just returned from spying on Max. What the man was doing wasn't something Rift Children condoned. Plus, it could possible land Max in prison, the last place a man who didn't age needed to be. Not that Ianto didn't think Max deserved it, but it would endanger them all.

"I know, this place is nothing like Paris. It smells better," Adrian deadpanned.

Ianto let out an amused snort. "Shut it, you know I'm not talking about the hotel room." He dreaded telling Adrian about what he had discovered, it was a thing that Adrian hated above all others, and he wasn't sure how his friend would take knowing that he couldn't stop it yet.

"Well, what is Maxi up to?" Adrian pressed.

"Adrian, listen, I'm going to tell you and you have to keep it together. I know you're going to want me to remove him from being a leader immediately but… I can't. Actually, I can't do anything about it… I'm not even going to tell him that I know. Or that we were even here."

"What's he doing? Running a whore house?" Adrian questioned with sarcasm.

Ianto looked up at Adrian. If only it was _just_ a whore house. Ianto was pretty sure that not all the whores were willing, and he wasn't even sure they were all of age. He hadn't stayed long enough to find out, he didn't think he could keep his anger in check. He had seen Sean, the boy that would eventually become Sarah Higgins' boyfriend, once she came back. Ianto shook his head. He didn't want to think about Sarah's return, especially not with Adrian sitting next to him. The night Sarah returned would be the night that Adrian would see Ianto for the human he was, and he knew it would hurt his friend deeply.

"Yeah." Ianto replied, "Along with a bit of drug dealing." As far as he could tell Sean hadn't been involved with the drug part. Just the other part. He was Max's favorite, after all.

"Oh…" Adrian sighed, looking down.

"I will put a stop to it. As soon as I can…"

"I know."

Ianto could tell his friend was upset by the news. "Adrian, I promise, I _will _execute him. Just not yet." Adrian nodded. Ianto pulled the Frenchman close. "I always keep my promises. You know that." Adrian nodded against Ianto's chest.

Ianto's phone started to ring, and Adrian pulled away. "You answer that while I get changed, and we can go do some gambling or eat at the buffet, whichever." Adrian muttered. Ianto nodded and answered the phone.

"This is Iden," he chirped.

"Hey," Jason answered, "So Ianto knows about you. Also, he's still being a big baby about me sleeping with other people." Ahh… that must mean that Gwen Cooper had joined team Torchwood. That would also mean that Suzie was dead, and little Ianto was now aware of Jack's immortality.

"Yes, well you should have communicated with me better," Ianto replied truthfully, wondering how different things would have been had he not left Jason. Ianto sat on the bed and allowed himself to wonder how much easier life would be if he had only fallen in love once.

"I hate when you do that," Jason sighed after a moment of silence that neither of the men had seemed to notice.

"Do what?"

"Remind me that you are Ianto."

Ianto sighed. Sometimes it hurt that Jason saw him and little Ianto as separate people. Maybe one day he would get used to it. Or maybe one day Jason would see them as the same person. He sure hoped so. "I am, though," he whispered.

"I know…" Jason said sounding a little sad.

Ianto looked toward the bathroom door where Adrian was. He heard the sound of the shower. "I miss you sometimes, you know. The you that little me gets to see." He admitted quietly. He did miss Jason, sometimes he just wanted to lean on the man again.

"Wanna role play it when you get home?" Jason suggested, managing to dispose of the depressing mood that had fallen over their conversation.

"Hmm… I don't think that would be a very wise thing to do," said Ianto with a grin.

"Yeah. So are you going to meet Ianto?" Jason asked coming back to the real reason of his call.

"Listen Jace, I have to go. I have a date with Adrian. Hope you don't mind?" Ianto said in a teasing tone, effectively avoiding the question.

"Just be sure to take pictures. Oh… better than that, take a video."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "You're funny."

"I try."

There was silence on both ends of the line for a moment as if neither man wanted to be the one to say goodbye.

"So what are you wearing?" Jason asked.

"Nothing," Ianto lied.

"It's in my head now. Ianto Jones, always playing with fire."

Ianto laughed. "It's what I do."

"I know you're him, and I love you," Jason said seriously.

"I know."

"Oh, that's all I get? Is the feeling not mutual?"

Ianto smiled and was just about to answer when the door to the bathroom opened. Adrian came out only wearing a towel. "Jason's on the phone. Did you want to talk to him?" Ianto offered. Adrian's eyes lit up.

"Yeah," Adrian insisted holding out his hand, Ianto handed over the phone and retreated to the bathroom to give Adrian a moment alone while he got ready to go out. He did, however, listen at the door. The conversation turned out to be nothing important.

Adrian said "Hello." Then there was a pause. Adrian said. "I miss you too." Another pause followed by, "No, we don't have time for that." And then, "That's not something you should brag about." There was a long pause. "I see..." silence. "Oh, too bad I dropped the camera off the little Eiffel tower and it broke into a million pieces." Another small pause and a chuckle. "Oh, I can be very descriptive when telling a story." Ianto decided to stop listening.

Instead he cleaned up and got ready for the night of fun with Adrian, which would most likely mean that they would stay out until three then come back to the room and pass out.

TW-TW-TW

"Bethan," Ianto said gently, walking into his daughter's room. The ancient girl was currently lying flat on her bed reading what looked to be Peter Pan.

"My name is Tink!" she yelled.

"Of course, Tink. Aria says you threw a coffee cup at her. Is that true?" Ianto asked knowing it was true. There had apparently been a bit of a fight because Aria hadn't known that Tink wanted all phone calls that came in from little Ianto to be forwarded to her. The incident had occurred four days before when Ianto and Adrian were still in Las Vegas, and Ianto couldn't help feeling like a father dealing with a misbehaving child after he got home from work. An image of Aria wearing a fifties housewife get up and pointing her finger at Bethan raised up in his mind and he had to force himself not to smile.

The ancient girl shrugged in response to her father's question and flipped a page of her book.

"Tink, we need to discuss this." Ianto insisted. He knew why she was acting out. She needed a break. Her childish behavior was proof of that.

"Why did you send her to work here? I don't like her." Tink pouted.

"Oh… I wasn't aware." He lied. "Why don't you like her?"

Tink got up on to her knees and looked her father in the eyes. "Remember when it was just you, me, and Jason?"

Ianto sighed. Tink hadn't had a 'You and Jason belong together' moment in a while. He knew this little outburst was just her way of trying to avoid how upset she was about the rebellion. "Bethan," he began needing to use her real name for what he was about to say. "It's okay, you know, if you want to take a break."

She turned back toward her book and flung herself flat on to the bed again. She looked at her book and began to ignore her father. It really annoyed him how she could be so immature; she was over a century old! Just then, Jason rushed into the room as if he was in a panic. Ianto hoped it wasn't that bad, whatever it was. He couldn't deal with anymore drama at the moment.

"I just heard, Tink," the man said with a frantic tone.

"What?" Bethan asked looking up from her book and at Jason. She appeared to think Jason was serious, though Ianto knew better.

"The evil step-mother was mean, and you had to banish her with a teacup."

Bethan let out a high pitched laugh that only Jason ever elicited.

"It's not a joke, she could have hurt her." Ianto interjected as Jason got on the bed and pulled Bethan into a mock comforting hug.

"I was just trying to give new mummy a scar to match Tad's," Tink pouted at Jason, still ignoring her father.

Ianto rolled his eyes. Bloody fantastic, now he had two childish adults to deal with.

"I know, it was very thoughtful of you," Jason said gently.

"Oi, the Minister is talking now, you two." Ianto growled.

They both looked at him and rolled their eyes in unison.

"Bethan, you are taking a break, you need it and you know it. Jason, you are going to be the leader of the Cardiff Rift. I suggest you pick a second."

"I don't need…" Bethan began, but Ianto cut her off.

"Yes you do!" Ianto shouted and then continued, "And now your Father is talking Bethan. You will go and apologize to Aria, am I understood?"

"I will apologize if we can spend the night, just the three of us…" Bethan pouted. "Please?" she added for good measure.

Ianto pointed toward the door. "Go apologize, then I will consider your proposal."

Bethan made a pout face then hopped off the bed and headed out the door. She slammed it behind her.

Ianto looked at Jason. "Do you have to encourage her childish behavior? She is one hundred and four, and you allow her to pretend that she is only four!"

"She's stressed out…" Jason began but Ianto cut him off.

"I'm well aware. But that is no reason for her to throw things at my wife!"

"Everyone knows to transfer calls from Ianto to Tink. Common knowledge," Jason laughed.

"Jason, you are such an asshole sometimes." Ianto growled then left the room and walked down the stairs and into the living area.

"It's okay, Tink really, no harm was done," Aria was saying as she gently rocked her sleeping baby. "Iden, are you ready?" she asked, looking up at her husband and clearly ready to go home.

Ianto looked down at his daughter who gave him puppy dog eyes. He sighed, she knew those eyes were his weakness. "Actually, I am going to stay here, Bethan am I have a lot to discuss."

Adrian came into the room from the kitchen then holding a cup of tea just as Jason came down the stairs with a passive face, Ianto could tell he was angry about being called an asshole and one look at Adrian told Ianto that Adrian could tell his lover was angry as well.

"Oh… Okay well then, I'm going to go ahead and go because I'm tired." Aria said with disappointment.

"Adrian, would you help Aria, please?" Ianto smiled at his friend. Adrian narrowed his eyes as if he knew that Ianto was the reason for Jason's distress.

"Of course," Adrian nodded. "Jason, will you be staying here as well?"

"Yes," Jason nodded smiling down at Bethan. "We're actually kicking everyone out, so I'm going to start clearing the place." He walked to the kitchen, stopping briefly to give Adrian a small peck on the cheek.

Twenty minutes later the only people remaining in the home were Ianto, Bethan, and Jason. They sat on the couch, watched Disney movies, and ate pizza until Bethan passed out. Jason took her up to her bed and tucked her in while Ianto cleaned up the mess they had made.

Jason came into the kitchen just as Ianto was putting away the last clean plate. Jason's arms wrapped around Ianto from behind and he rested his head on Ianto's shoulder. "I'm sorry I'm such an asshole," he whispered. "Will you forgive me?"

"I will always forgive you," Ianto sighed, staring at his and Jason's reflection in the window over the sink. Jason pulled the Welshman closer.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Jason released his grip and leaned on the counter beside Ianto so he could see his face. "You know, this night was fun. You want to continue it in our old room?"

"I'm a married man Jason," Ianto growled, angry again. Why did Jason have to be constantly asking for more than Ianto could give?

"Just to sleep. I know you don't like to sleep alone," Jason snapped.

"I don't think it would be a wise thing for us to do," Ianto explained. He began to walk away but Jason grabbed him by the arm before he was out of reach and pulled him close.

"Why? Because you can't resist me? Wonder why that is, Ianto," Jason cooed running his finger along Ianto's bottom lip.

"Jason, I am begging you here," Ianto sighed. Jason was playing dirty by using Ianto's given name. They were always careful to use the current name so that it was habit and they didn't slip up in public.

"I don't understand why you fight it so much. It can't be healthy."

"Jason, I have other people to think about here."

"What does it matter to everyone else what the two of us do alone?" Jason hissed. "It should be between us, and no one else!"

"Only you live in that fantasy world, Jace. Normal people understand that their actions have an effect on others!"

"Oh, I am very aware of how I affect others," Jason leered.

Ianto rolled his eyes and tried to pull away from Jason's grip. Jason didn't release.

"Jason, let me go."

"Is it an order?"

"Yes!"

Jason let go with a scowl and turned to look away from Ianto. Apparently the dish towel hanging over the sink was really interesting.

"Jason, I know you..."

"Don't. Just don't. You don't have to explain. I will stay here the rest of the night, you may go home to your _wife."_

"Jace," Ianto tried again.

"Adrian told me that when you were with Anna you still took a chance to be with Jack if you got it… He's more important to you than I am, your Jack. You love him so much…"

"Jason, I…"

"Just go," Jason said hastily, then quickly fled the kitchen.

**_Jack_**

_Jack felt stupid. Things had been going so well… and then his flirty ways had screwed it all up. That, along with his big mouth and his jealousy which, quite frankly, wasn't his style at all. He had said things he didn't mean. He had hurt Ianto, and now after three days of Jack trying to apologize the man was still acting indifferent. The worst part was that Jack knew Ianto was hurting. It was easy to tell, plus Jack may have been watching the Welshman very closely. It wasn't stalking if he only did it during office hours, and of course for Torchwood all hours were office hours._

_Part of Jack knew that Ianto was just being stubborn, while the other part of him knew he deserved the torture Ianto was putting him through. That was the reason Jack was refusing to drink Ianto's coffee; he needed to be punished and he knew it. He wondered momentarily what had made him so possessive at the sight of the god-like man that had been in Ianto's living room without a shirt. Any other time and Jack would have flirted with the man, and possibly suggested a fun threesome, but some part of him had not wanted to share Ianto. That was why he had staked his claim and used the word 'boyfriend.' _

_Jack shuddered at his desk. Ianto Jones could not be described with a word as simple as boyfriend. Actually, Jack couldn't think of a word that would be worthy of Jones, Ianto Jones. _

_The truth of the matter was that Jack had overreacted simply because he had caught Ianto in a lie. (Well, and the hot guy, but Jack was trying hard to deny that.) There was no way his Ianto hadn't shagged that Jason bloke. Not with the way he had allowed Jason to touch him. Ianto tensed up if Tosh tried to touch him, which suggested (if Jack was one to come to conclusions without all the facts) that Ianto must have slept with Jason._

_Jack had already done research on Jason. The man was the estranged son of a billionaire who had died and left his wealth to Jason. Jason had a mansion that used to be used as a home for wayward teens. Of course…. The man was beautiful and stinking rich. Jack didn't really know why that would make a difference though, since Jack himself was beautiful and stinking rich. There was only one thing that Jason Sims could offer Ianto that he couldn't, and that was the ability to grow old beside him. Jack let out a sigh into his unsatisfying takeaway coffee._

_The worst part of the whole fight had to have been Jack's parting words. They had been petty and filled with poison, and Jack had regretted them the moment they crossed his lips. He had seen the hurt look on Ianto's face: Ianto now thought that Jack only saw him as the Tea-boy, which couldn't be farther from the truth. Jack knew he was falling for Ianto. He knew he wanted to make it all better, and he knew he didn't know where to begin. _

_"You requested my presence, Harkness?" Owen said with his usual snark as he marched into Jack's office and plopped casually into the chair opposite the immortal's desk._

_"Yes, I'd like an update about Ianto's mental state," Jack replied._

_"Well, he is still screwed up and he isn't taking his meds. Though I think I know why… His mum died from an overdose, could be he is scared of going the same way. A good thing, really; it means he's not suicidal."_

_"Well, that's promising…"_

_"Yeah."_

_"Anything else?"_

_"He needs to eat better, and he needs more sleep. Of course he isn't taking my advice about those things, either. He's a stubborn prat, I'll tell you that."_

_"Well, you should be able to relate well with him, then," Jack smiled although the smile didn't quite reach his eyes._

_"Very funny," Owen muttered getting up, "If there is nothing else I'd like to go. There are a lot of birds out there, I have so little time to meet them all."_


	12. Chapter 12

AN: Chapter 12. Already. It's all thanks to Taamar of course. She is one amazing lady. Also, just so you are all aware, all the orange m&m's in the world belong to her. So pay tribute people. J

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Spoilers: umm…. Ghost machine and I think that's it…

Warnings: Usual plus there is a bit of a het slash/het spanking.

Rating: MA

**_Jack_**

_It seemed to Jack that when he caused a problem he would unconsciously then go out of his way to make the problem worse. And asking Ianto to set up the shooting range so he could flirt with Gwen Cooper had been an awful move. He had planned on showing Gwen how to use the firearms and possibly flirting, but he hadn't planned on throwing it into Ianto's face in such blatant display of scorn. Of course, it had been in response to Ianto getting Jack's hopes up when he asked to speak with him alone._

_Jack was now tracking Ianto's car. Looking at the display in the computer he could see that Ianto's little Audi was parked on a street in a nicer area of town. It was just a regular street with Victorian era homes lining it. Jack had no idea why Ianto would be there, though. He had then pulled up the addresses of everyone that Ianto knew, and none of them lived on that street, or anywhere near it. Just to finish off his little stalking episode he decided that while the others were looking for Bernie he would drive down the street. Just to make sure his employee was okay. Not because he was a creepy stalker. _

_He was surprised when he went down the street and found it overrun with parked cars. He saw Ianto standing outside one of the homes talking to Jason, only he was wearing a different colored shirt than what he had on that morning. Of course it could have just been a trick of the sunlight. He saw the Welshman's eyes follow the SUV as it passed. Jack watched in the side view mirror as Ianto covered one of his cheeks then quickly made his way into the house. _

_The SUV didn't look conspicuous at all parked at the end of the street with a nice view of Ianto's Audi. Jack watched for a good fifteen minutes. He wasn't sure why he was watching, no doubt the Welshman had seen him when he drove by, and would probably be pretty pissed. Finally Ianto came to his car, he was wearing the shirt he had worn that morning, proving to Jack it must have been a trick of the light. _

_Jack didn't see any point in putting off the inevitable, so he dialed Ianto's number, expecting to be told off for following him. Only when the Welshman answered he wasn't angry. Actually, he acted as if he didn't know that Jack had been spying. Could he really not have noticed? Jack wondered what could possibly be so distracting to the normally observant man. When Ianto ended the call quickly Jack watched him lean against his steering wheel and cry. _

**Iden Miller**

Ianto came into the kitchen of Jason's house holding a grocery bag. Aria was going over a list of do's and don'ts with Ruby's regular nanny. Ianto didn't really understand why she was doing it being as the girl had to already know but it didn't matter. The only thing he could think about at the moment was watching his younger self and Jason making out in the foyer.

"Mrs. Miller, I know… dear I've taken care of this baby before. I promise I would never let any harm come to her," said the nanny (Tammy was her name, if Ianto remembered correctly, and he usually did), her words pulling Ianto out of his musings about whether or not it was healthy to be jealous of one's self. He was leaning toward the 'less than healthy' conclusion, although his jealous side was convinced that it was okay to want to kick yourself and pull your own hair and get into a childish 'that's not yours' fight. He apparently still needed to work on his jealously issues when it came to Jason.

Ianto finished putting away the groceries he had gotten while he listened to his wife say good bye to the infant in her arms. When she was finished he took Ruby from her. He gave her kisses and made her smile, and she attempted to grab his nose. Finally he gave the baby to Tammy, who waved goodbye and left out the garage door.

"So what's got you all upset?" Aria asked, jumping up to sit on the counter.

Ianto narrowed his eyes. She knew he hated when people sat on a kitchen counter. It wasn't hygienic.

"Right now I'm upset because you're on the counter."

"I know, I'm very naughty. What are you going to do about it?" Aria said teasingly, raising her eyebrows.

Ianto grinned. Oh, she wanted to play. He walked over to his wife and spread her knees apart so he could stand between them. He ran a hand up her skirt and was pleasantly surprised when he found she wasn't wearing any underwear. It seemed like an open invitation, so he ran his hand to her opening and pressed a finger in, not at all surprised to find she was already wet. She usually planned these play scenes out, and that would always leave her excited. It was obvious she had been thinking about this one for a while, being as she hadn't put on any panties.

"How long have you been planning this?" Ianto whispered, removing his finger and running it over her clit.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she grinned, unable to contain a small moan.

"Hmm… well then, my naughty girl, would you like for me to punish you?"

"I think I deserve it."

"Oh, I agree," Ianto said with a leer. He removed his hand from her skirt and pulled her off the counter, then turned her around and slapped her ass. "Go to the bedroom and think about what you've done. I will be up there shortly to properly punish you."

"Yes, Minister," she said, falsely demure. He slapped her ass again and she let out a little squeal then hurried out of the room.

He loved that girl.

Jason came into the kitchen right after Aria had vacated it. He was smiling brightly, though it turned down when he saw Ianto. They were still fighting. Ianto thought it ironic that Jason had most likely been smiling because Little Ianto had agreed to stay the night and now wasn't smiling because he had seen Ianto.

"If I said I would join you and little me tonight, would you forgive me?" Ianto deadpanned.

Jason's eyes lit up as if he had just been told Christmas was coming early.

"It's not gonna happen." Ianto sighed, rolling his eyes. "Now if you'll excuse me I have a naughty wife to deal with."

"You're a cruel man, Iden. A cruel, cruel man."

Ianto shrugged and headed out of the kitchen and up the stairs to the bedroom he shared with his wife. He immediately smelled the scent of vanilla. It was Aria's favorite scent, but at the moment it seemed a bit ironic. What the two were about to do was going to be anything but vanilla.

Aria was laying in the middle of the bed. She was the picture of beauty. Ianto could tell she had arranged her hair so it would fall perfectly on the pillow. She had on a bright red bra that caused her to have a bountiful amount of cleavage, she also had on a matching thong. On the bedside table Aria had put out an assortment of toys. She really wanted to play.

"What's your safe word?"

"Hippo," Aria replied.

Ianto smiled. She changed her word every time and had never had to use it, and he never intended to push her far enough that it was necessary. She always attempted to make him laugh with it, though, so he kept asking.

Ianto schooled his features and picked up a hairbrush that had never been used to brush hair. "You know better than to sit on the counter dear. We prepare food there. It's unsanitary."

"I'm clean," Aria pouted, arching her chest up.

"Oh, no you're not. You're a very dirty girl."

She bit her lower lip and smiled. "Only for you."

"Hmm…" Ianto breathed. "Well turn around, dirty girl. You need to be disciplined."

Aria made a show of turning onto her stomach then arching her butt up into the air. Ianto smiled and shook his head. He then got onto the bed and ran his free hand over her toned ass. He decided to start out gentle. He let the brush fall onto the bed and gave Aria's left cheek a gentle slap. She let out a small whimper, and the sound went straight to Ianto's cock. He gently slapped the right cheek. This time she moaned. Ianto's trousers were getting rather tight. He continued to give her gentle spanks, making sure to cover the whole area.

Once he was sure she was warmed up enough he grabbed the hairbrush. He ran its smooth side gently over Aria's skin. She pressed toward it. "Do you think you've been punished enough, dear?"

"No Minister," she pleaded. He loved how kinky she was.

"Are you sure? Your ass is very pink."

"You prefer red."

"Yes. Yes, I do," Ianto agreed, spanking her sharply with the brush. She let out a little surprised cry, but the second time the smooth wood came in contact with her flesh it was a full-fledged moan. Ianto continued until he was satisfied that her skin was red enough and he was sure that he kept it up he would cum in his pants.

He dropped the brush onto the floor and bent over to kiss his wife's reddened flesh. "I think you've learned your lesson now," he said against her skin.

"Yes, Minister," she agreed.

Ianto sat up and gently pulled Aria's thong off her ass. The little triangle that covered her front was soaked with her own juices. Ianto barely managed to hold in what was sure to be a primal growl. He put his hand between her thighs and ran two fingers over her clit. She let out a gentle whimper. He continued his path back towards himself and easily slipped the same to fingers into her. "You're so ready for me, aren't you?"

"Yes," she breathed out.

"Well, you'll have to wait. You put out quite a few toys that we have yet to get to."

"Please," she begged as he began to slowly fuck her with his fingers.

"Oh, I don't know… do you think you've been a good enough girl to cum more than just once?"

"Yes," she shouted.

Ianto smiled to himself as he ran his other hand around her body and then began to gently massage her sweet spot in a circular motion. It didn't take long for her body to start to tremble and soon she was crying out his name as her inner muscles clasped around his fingers. He stopped the fingers on her sweet spot but continued to move the ones inside her until her orgasm was over.

He gently unclasped her bra. "Roll onto your back," he demanded in a gentle voice. She laid down flat and then turned to her back. Ianto ever so gently removed her bra and her thong. Her face was flushed and there were small beads of sweat on her skin. She smiled lazily at him and then pretended to yawn.

Ianto began to quickly remove his clothes. "You're an impatient woman, did you know that? I should make you wait; I was just trying to enjoy the view."

"Come see with your hands" she invited

Ianto liked that idea very much, so he quickly undressed and climbed on to the bed to hover over his wife's body. He gently pressed his lips against hers and then deepened the kiss. He wanted the moment to last, but soon he couldn't help himself and he was taking her. He moved slowly inside her and whispered sweet nothings into her ear about how much he loved her and how wonderful she made him feel. Soon Aria was experiencing her second release for the night and Ianto was having his first. The toys she had laid out were left forgotten on the side table.

"Do you feel better now?" Aria asked as she gently ran a finger around the burn scars on Ianto's chest.

"I felt fine before."

"No, you've been cranky ever since that night that you stayed at Tink's house."

"Have I?" Ianto asked. He'd felt a little off, but hadn't known it showed.

"Yeah, but I mean, not toward me or Ruby."

"Who else is there?" Ianto teased, pulling his wife closer.

"Well, you kinda snapped at Adrian before he left yesterday. And you and Jason have been at each other's throats."

"I see…" Ianto replied realizing that she was right. He_ had_ snapped at Adrian yesterday. The man was heading to see Mia to inform her in person that he would be the second in command at Cardiff and that Jason was now the Rift Leader. Adrian usually didn't argue when Ianto told him to do something, but yesterday he had. He hadn't wanted to leave. He'd wanted to stay and celebrate with Jason today. It had been a rational request; the trip to see Mia was a pointless one that Ianto had made up to get his friend out of Cardiff, but it had irritated Ianto that the man was arguing with a direct order and so he had snapped at his friend. He did regret it though, and he had already called the Frenchman three times to apologize.

"Is that all I get? An 'I see'? You're not going to share with me why you and Jason are mad at each other? Or why you bit your best mate's head off yesterday?"

"It's… complicated."

"I'm sure I can keep up."

Ianto looked over at their bed side clock and realized that it was nearly six thirty. "Don't you want to go enjoy the party a bit?"

Aria let out a little frustrated growl at his evasion, then got off the bed. She hastily put on a pair of yoga pants and then reached for a clean tank top, forcing the garment over her head. "I'm going to go get a beer, then I'm going to come back up here and you are going to tell me what the issue is. And if you don't, understand that that was the last time you will get any from me till you do."

"You should get a water, beer will do nothing to rehydrate you."

Aria let out another growl and exited the room slamming the door behind her. Ianto sighed then got up. First he blew out all the candles in the room then he went about picking up all the discarded clothing. Once he was satisfied that the room was clean he took a quick shower, put on some track bottoms, and got into bed.

Aria came back as he was reading a book. "You could have warned me I was going to be running into Ianto." She spat. She was holding to bottles of water and she handed one to him.

"I honestly didn't remember that you would be," he lied.

The girl sat down on the bed and cuddled up next to her husband. Ianto loved how even when she was upset with him she still wanted to cuddle. "Okay, let's start with why you and Jason are fighting."

"Fine, but you aren't going to like it."

"Spit it out." She insisted.

"He is mad because I won't have sex with him, and I am mad because he wants me to have sex with him and won't drop it."

Aria sat up and looked at her husband in the face. "Seriously?"

"Yes."

"Okay, well I want you to fix it. Not with sex though!"

"Maybe I don't want to fix it."

"Yes you do. You love him. Maybe not like you love Jack, but you do love him."

Ianto sighed and sank down into the bed. "Why do I have to love so many people?" he complained.

"Because you have a giant heart, and because so many people love you. I think the issue with Jason is he doesn't see sex as a big deal like the rest of us. He thinks it's okay to fuck someone, if you want to fuck someone and they want you back. And he's right… if he wants someone and they want him back then he should just do it. He also uses sex to fix problems or as a way to comfort or be comforted. He uses it when he can't sleep. He uses it when he's angry, when he's happy. Everything. Jason can have several separate feelings going on about one sexual encounter. So in a way you were right when you said he was a difficult man."

Ianto narrowed his eyes at his wife. "When did you become a Jason expert?"

"Adrian and I like to talk," she grinned.

Ianto shook his head and let out a small laugh. "Anyway… I don't know how to fix this fight with Jason. As you said, sex is his way of fixing things, and I'm not going to do that."

"Promise him some in the future. You know, after I…"

"It's not only you holding me back, there's Adrian to consider."

Aria raised an eyebrow. "He wouldn't care. His main goal in life is for Jason to be happy…"

"He cares." Ianto insisted. "That's why I sent him away…"

"Why? Because Jason and Ianto are going to…"

Ianto nodded.

"I see…"

Ianto smiled then flipped his wife onto her back so she was pinned beneath him. "'I see'? Is that all I get…" he teased, repeating her earlier words before pressing his lips against hers. Turns out they did get to use those toys after all.

TW-TW-TW

It was nearly three am when Ianto woke, suddenly remembering that he needed to leave a suit for little Ianto in Jason's bathroom. He went to his closet and flipped the switch. His perfectly tailored suits all hung neatly. He stared at them for a moment trying hard to remember which one he had worn so long ago, but he simply couldn't. For a moment he started to panic. Would his time line get screwed up if he didn't put the correct suit in Jason's bathroom? He was certain it would.

Aria caught him in his panicked state and simply picked for him, and once he held her selection in his hand he was sure it was the correct suit. He walked with purpose from the third floor down to the second and then to the room at the end of the hall. Little Ianto was fast asleep in Jason's arms, but Jason was wide awake. He followed Ianto with his eyes as he walked to the bathroom and hung the suit in it.

"He said he was going to leave early enough to go home and get ready," Jason whispered when Ianto came back into the room.

"Well, he won't," Ianto replied, coming to stand closer to the bed. He gently ran a hand through Jason's hair. "Go back to sleep, and tomorrow we will talk."

Jason reached up and grabbed Ianto's hand bringing it to his lips and kissing the palm. "Okay," he agreed.

Ianto left the room and went back up to his own. He snuggled close to his wife and soon fell asleep again.

**_Jack_**

_Jack sighed. He had just sent Owen home for the night after getting yet another report on his Welshman's mental state. No, not his Welshman; Ianto wasn't his. Ianto belonged to no one. The man had made that perfectly clear. Of course if his latest intelligence from Owen was to be believed it was possible that Ianto did indeed belong to someone. Jack sighed. Nearly twenty-four hours before, Ianto had sat in the chair in front of Jack's desk while Jack had tried once again to apologize, and Ianto had once again refused to budge. And then he had acted frightened again, though Jack now understood that the Welshman's flinch had been because Jack had grabbed his wrist, which was sore from being tied up. The mental image of Ianto tied to a bed made Jack's cock stir. Jack Harkness was not one to go so long without release. He also wasn't one to wank, he could usually find a willing partner, but desperate times called for desperate measures. _

_ Jack got up out of his chair and went to lean in front of his desk as he conjured up a mental image of Ianto sitting in the chair before him. The man had been at the perfect height to suck Jack's cock, and as Jack undid his pants and pulled out his member he imagined that it was Ianto's hands. Stroking himself, he imagined it was Ianto's lips around him. In his mind's eye he could see Ianto bound tightly, struggling playful against his ropes. Jack let out a moan. He wanted to be the one to tie Ianto to the bed, but he would never use harsh ropes. He would have use the silk ties that Ianto wore. An image of someone else fucking his Welshman (not his, damn it!) while he was tied to a bed with ropes popped up in Jack's head. Jason, of course. It had to be Jason. _

_Jack began to speed up his strokes, needing desperately to bring himself off. His jealousy of Jason only proved to intensify his need for release, and soon he was coming with a shout. He closed his eyes and let out a growl. He really needed to get over Ianto Jones. _


	13. Chapter 13

AN: I know this one seems to be all about Jack, but the man has a lot of feelings. Thank you Taamar as usual. *hugs*

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Warnings: Usual suspects.

Rating: MA

Spoilers: Cyberwoman through They keep killing Suzie.

**_Jack_**

_Over the past three weeks Jack had imagined many ways of getting Ianto Jones back into his bed, but killing his cyber girlfriend, threatening to send him to a UNIT prison, and holding the man prisoner himself hadn't been one of them. And he certainly hadn't expected his prisoner to initiate sex, but as he led Ianto Jones handcuffed toward his bunker he decided he didn't care what events led to having the Welshman again. The only thing he cared about was having the Welshman. Of course he told himself that this was a onetime thing. That come tomorrow morning he would go back to being the boss who was upset with his employee for lying on his resume and endangering the team. Yeah, right. _

_As Ianto fell asleep in Jack's arms sometime later the immortal couldn't help the feelings that had arisen. He didn't want it to just be sex. He wanted much more. He should have realized when he called Ianto 'his' in his mind all those times, and again during sex. Despite trying to deny it to himself and to Ianto, he needed the man, and needing someone who would someday die and leave him scared the shit out of Jack. _

_Ianto wasn't the first Welshman that Jack had fallen for, either. Back in the 40's there had been Brody Collins. The man had been amazing and full of sprit, plus he had a nice ass. It had been back when Jack was still a freelance agent, so he hadn't seen the man every day, but every time he was in Cardiff during the twenty years that he knew Brody the two would be inseparable. When Brody had died of 'natural causes,' Jack had been crushed. And the feelings he was now feeling for Ianto were somehow stronger than what he had felt for Brody. Though Ianto reminded Jack of Brody in a way: the man had always seemed to be keeping a secret. Jack had never figured out what it was, and now he knew he never would._

_ That night Jack held Ianto through many nightmares, until finally one was so bad that he had to wake Ianto, which caused the Welshman to jump away from him. It hurt when Ianto refused to tell Jack about his dream, and it hurt even more when Ianto told Jack that he would confide in Jason. So Jack did what he always did. He covered up his hurt with anger. The first person he had taken his anger out on was Owen. The doctor had started it though, by yelling at Jack like he was child. Trying to act as if he had a higher authority… which he did when it came to medical stuff. Jack had told him that on several occasions. But that wasn't the point._

_The doctor seemed to be out to protect everyone from their leader's wrath, because as soon as the girls arrived Owen was back in Jack's office again, this time telling him that Ianto would be leaving the Hub. Jack had thrown an absolute fit about it but in the end the doctor had won._

_It seemed that Tosh was going to be the next victim of Jack's temper until she began to yell at the captain before he could even open his mouth. She called him insensitive, and told him off for putting his own feelings above those of all the other members of his team. Jack sighed as she left his office. She was right and he knew it. It was with a quick 'I'm sorry' to her that he left the Hub, remembering to grab Ianto's phone from his desk before he left. He had a Welshman to apologize to._

**Iden Miller**

Ianto paced in his hotel room in Berlin. He knew what was happening in Cardiff with little Ianto and Lisa and that whole mess, and he knew he had to tell Jason. He just needed to pace a bit more and then he would work up the courage.

"You're going to wear a hole in the carpet," Adrian teased, coming out of the bathroom. He was wearing a pair of black rimmed eye glasses. Ianto narrowed his eyes.

"What's with the glasses?" He asked.

"Mia said they make me look distinguished. Do you know how annoying it is to be nearly two hundred years old and have everyone think you're a teenager? So irritating! People who are younger than I am always looking down. Thinking I'm not as experienced. Well, I used to be a whore, I'm very experienced."

"Why do I feel like this conversation is no longer directed at me?"

Adrian shook his head. "Never mind. What's with the pacing?"

"I'm about to call Jason to tell him he can't see little Ianto for a week."

"You know, whenever you say little Ianto it sounds like you're talking about your penis."

"I can assure you if I was talking about my penis the word 'little' would not be involved."

"I'm well aware…" Adrian said rolling his eyes. "Jason's bigger though."

Ianto narrowed his eyes and grabbed his phone, a retort of 'I'm well aware,' dying on his lips.

As expected, Jason had not been happy to learn that he had to steer clear of his favorite charge. In an odd it way made Ianto appreciate Jason even more. The way he would do anything to keep Little Ianto safe, even if it meant calling the Minister all sorts of awful names and threatening to quit, was heartwarming. Sort of. In the end it had been Adrian who took control of the phone call. The way he had spoken to Jason using his native French had been delicate, and Ianto had felt like an intruder as he listened. Jason apologized to Ianto when the phone was handed back and he assured the Minister that he would be following the order, even though he didn't want to.

Next Ianto had called his wife. He gave her the same order and she made no argument, even going as far as to promise she would go a week without seeing little Ianto. Ianto did notice how she hadn't stated when she would start her week of not seeing him. Just to be sure that she would go against his direct order he reminded her that Ruby was his hope for the future. He knew he could count on Aria to visit little Ianto on the very first day of his suspension. After all, she had already done so.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto paced in his own bedroom this time. He had just gotten off the phone with a few of his stronger bodyguards, and they would be arriving at the mansion soon. Just in time to help lock Jason in his own basement until Little Ianto returned from his camping trip from hell. With a sigh, Ianto decided there was no point in putting it off any longer.

Jason was sitting in the living room reading a book when Ianto found him. The bodyguards flanked Ianto on either side. Adrian squeezed himself into the room before Ianto could open his mouth and positioned himself in front of his lover.

"Just don't tell him and none of this will be necessary," the Frenchman pleaded.

"I have to and you know it," Ianto replied.

"Tell me what?" Jason asked, looking around Adrian's body at Ianto. The tenth century knight placed a gentle hand on Adrian's back as he did.

Adrian turned to face Jason and knelt in front of him. "Please," he pleaded, putting his hands on either side Jason's face. Ianto could tell he was shaking and he wasn't even sure who the Frenchman was begging any more.

"Jason, I have to tell you…"

"No!" Adrian yelled, turning to face his friend. "You don't…. please don't…" he pleaded then he dropped to his knees and began to openly sob. "You'll have to put me in the cells too…"

It took all of Ianto's mental strength to continue despite his friend's threat. "Little me is going on a camping trip… he will be beaten, badly… and I had to tell you because you told me that I did."

Jason got up off the couch and knelt beside Adrian on the floor he gently raised the man's face. "You will not be put in the cells. Do you understand?" Adrian let out a little whimper but nodded. Jason looked back at Ianto.

"So you're planning on locking me in my own basement to prevent me from saving you?"

Ianto nodded. It sounded ridiculous.

"Well, never think that I didn't fight for you…" Jason growled and then he tried to get past the guards. It was no use. Soon he was being led to the basement. And Adrian was shaking and sobbing on the floor, Ianto could almost sense a breakdown.

Ianto knelt beside his friend and put a hand on his shoulder. Adrian shrugged away from it. "I'm sorry. I had to. As soon as he told little me I was locked into it."

"I know. Doesn't make it any better for me," Adrian whimpered.

"You can see him. Stay with him if you wish. It's just for a few days."

"I'm sorry, I know I'm being over dramatic about it. I just don't like to see him hurt."

"I know. I don't either."

"Couldn't tell," Adrian said so softly Ianto barely heard it. He then got up off the floor and headed out of the room without another word.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto was in his office. Not for any particular reason, he was just hiding out. It was a lost cause and he knew it; Jason seemed to be able to sense Ianto's particular rush from miles away. Ianto wondered if it was Jason's anger that made him sense Jason at the end of the hallway so quickly or if it was the fact that he was expecting the man.

Jason barged into the room, breaking the door knob as he shoved the door open. Ianto, out of a sort of survival instinct, went to go behind the desk to put distance between himself and the very angry man.

"Jason, before you begin, remember that I am the Minister," Ianto said calmly.

Jason attempted to shut the broken door and when that didn't work he put a chair in front of it.

"Thanks for fixing that," Ianto teased, trying to ease the tension in the room.

Jason shot him a deadly look. "From the moment I could fully understand what you were saying, and maybe even before that, you have been telling me. 'We can't let anyone outside of the Children know.' Rule number one! We relocate for that!"

"Yes, I know…"

"I'm not finished, _Minister,_" Jason growled. "If that is what I am supposed to do than you can forget it. I will not send him to that planet. He will not land there and blame me for it!"

"Of course not…"

"Well, I need to do something. He's was already on thin ice, then he told that woman about us!"

"You could take away his car…" Ianto grinned, Jason used to do that when Little Ianto lived with him.

"Not. Fucking. Funny." Jason shouted plopping down in the chair that was serving to keep the door shut. "Is she trustworthy?"

Ianto nodded. "Yes, Tosh will be a great asset to us."

Jason shifted slightly and Ianto could tell that his anger was fading. The worst was over. "Well, fine then…"

Ianto sat down in the chair behind his desk and let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"I don't like Harkness." Jason said tightly.

Ianto placed his head on the desk. He had thought the worst was over, but this was a conversation he really didn't want to have. "Okay." Ianto mumbled out.

"He just… he's arrogant, annoying, his horrible at caring for someone who's hurt, and it's his fault Ianto is so bruised up."

"You're arrogant. You can be damn annoying and…"

"Don't you dare," Jason warned. "I never wanted to do any of those things… and the only time he was ever that bruised was after combat training. Even during intense scenes it never got that bad."

"I know," Ianto said, looking up. "I'm just trying to defend Jack, whom I happen to love."

"Of course," Jason sighed, looking down into his hands. There was a knock on the door then and Jason got up to let Adrian in.

"I didn't even know you had been released until I went down and you weren't there."

"I'm sorry," Jason said, pulling the Frenchman into a hug. "You were asleep, I didn't want to wake you."

"You've been gone all day. You didn't even call…" Adrian continued.

"I know, I just didn't know when you would wake up."

Adrian looked down at his watch. "Well, guess what? I've never once slept beyond two. "

Ianto had never seen Adrian not just accept an apology right away from Jason. It disturbed him to see the two so out of sync, but he felt like maybe his friend was growing a bit of a backbone, and that was promising.

"I said I was sorry, I had things to do. I was preoccupied," Jason sighed.

Adrian looked over at Ianto slightly then back at Jason. "Of course." He nodded, then he turned and left the room.

TW-TW-TW

It wasn't like Ianto hadn't known that this day was coming. He had been called away to the Peru rift and had been asleep when he got the call from his wife. Little Ianto had his first charge. Part of him was excited as he headed toward the mansion in a cab. He missed Sarah, and it was going to be nice to see her again. Another part of him was dreading what was to come. Adrian hadn't called him or answered his calls since before Aria called to inform Ianto of Sarah's arrival. It wasn't a good sign.

There was no one at the mansion when Ianto arrived, which was to be expected as he hadn't told anyone he was heading home. Ianto sent a text to Adrian's phone to let the Frenchman know he was home, and that they should probably talk. Adrian had sent back a very simple 'of course'.

Ianto had been sitting on the stairs for only fifteen minutes when Adrian came in. His friend sat down beside him and they were both silent for a few moments.

"I didn't know you then. I'm so sorry." Ianto sighed when it became clear that Adrian wasn't going to initiate the awkward conversation.

"Is that supposed to make it better? Who cares if you fucked Jason while someone else was tied to the bed, as long as you didn't know the bloke?"

"I was young…"

"I understand that… but what's your excuse now?"

"Jason and I are just…"

"Don't insult my intelligence with your bullshit!" Adrian snarled, standing up. "You think I didn't know? That I wasn't aware? Because it's hard not to know, especially when Jason gives me the fucking details!"

Ianto could only stare at his friend in shock.

"Let's see," Adrian continued, "the last time was the day we came back from the rift trip. Of course it was just a make-out session if I remember correctly. No, the last time you fucked was three years ago… am I correct?"

"You're telling me that you knew? This whole time?"

"Of course I knew!"

"Adrian, I've tried not to…"

Adrian put up his hand to stop Ianto. "I love him. More than anything. I would do anything to make him happy. Because when he's not happy, I'm not happy. The way you string him along… it hurts him. You need to officially end it. I mean it. You need to tell him that it's over forever, and you actually need to stick with it."

"It's not that simple."

"Yes it is!"

"Okay, then why don't you just tell him that you don't want him with me? Tell _him_ to end it!"

"I…"

"What, afraid of who he would choose? Afraid he would choose even just a chance with me over you?"

Adrien slapped Ianto square in the face. Ianto just sat on the stairs and looked down at his feet. His anger was boiling at the surface.

"Do you think you're better than him? At least he's honest about being a slut." Adrian spat.

Ianto shot up from his seat on the stairs and pushed Adrian up against the nearest wall lifting the man off the ground slightly so they were eye to eye.

"You need to grow some balls, Adrian. He will choose you over me. He loves you!"

Adrian shook his head and began to cry. "He doesn't. I'm just a convenient shag… it's you he wants."

"He needs you," Ianto replied. Gently he lowered his friend back to the ground and engulfed him in a hug. Adrian buried his face into Ianto's chest and let his tears fall.

"I'm sorry I called you a slut."

"That's okay, you're hardly the first."

TW-TW-TW

If it had been odd for Ianto to be yelled at by his older self it was nothing compared to yelling at his younger self, but he needed Sarah to be trained by Jason, and he knew that she would not be trained as hard as he had been. Being with Ruby always calmed Ianto, so he held her as she fell asleep. After he placed his now-sleeping daughter in her cot he traveled back down the hall to his and Aria's room where he found his wife sobbing on the bed. He realized that he had forgotten an important part of the night, but now the conversation Aria and Little Ianto had had was at the forefront of his mind.

"He's right you know. You and Ruby are the most important things in the world to me. I love you so much."

"You love Jack and Jason more. It's a known fact."

"Last time I checked I there wasn't a way to measure love."

She just started to cry harder. Ianto got on the bed and pulled her to him. "You'll have other lovers, you know, as your life goes on. But I know you will always love me, and I will always love you."

**_Jack_**

_It should have come as no surprise to Jack that Ianto hadn't forgiven him right off the bat. The week Jack spent without the Welshman had been eye-opening to say the least. Not only was the Hub not running smoothly, Jack found himself literally craving the other man's presence. He had caught himself on several occasions dialing the younger man's number only to cancel the call before it even started. He had once found himself driving toward Ianto's flat when he was supposed to be heading in the opposite direction. Once he had even sat in front of his computer staring at the small blinking dot on the screen that was Ianto's tracker, after which he had gladly accepted to go to a UNIT meeting in London as a much needed distraction. Only he found once he got there that he was unfocused, and he remembered how much he hated UNIT. So he had come back to the Hub and then he'd had that disturbing nightmare and come up to his office to find Ianto there._

_Jack had wanted desperately to kiss and hold the Welshman, but he didn't want to push to fast… he wanted their new relationship to be built on more than just a sexual attraction. Then the death of Estelle reminded Jack of why he had decided not to get involved with anyone again, and of course Ianto had accepted that. He told Jack that friendship was all he was after. That helped Jack to relax a bit. What really won Jack over, though, was when Ianto hadn't been angry at Jack for allowing Jasmine to go with the fairies. Ianto seemed to understand that sometimes leaders had to make difficult decisions. It hadn't surprised Jack when the two immediately jumped back in bed together; the electricity between them was too strong to resist. What _had_ surprised Jack was Jason's appearance in the flat. And Jack had surprised himself again with how jealous and possessive he got. Hadn't he and Ianto just discussed they were just friends? He couldn't believe that he had hit Jason instead of inviting him to join in for round two. _

_The camping trip was supposed to be a way to clear Jack's head. Being out in the open air. Getting back to his ancestral roots. He hadn't counted on Gwen's stupid 'who'd you last snog?' game, which only proved to make Jack's jealous side rear its ugly head again when Ianto's answer had been Lisa. It was terrible, who got jealous of a dead girl? He hadn't had too much to dwell on the situation though, with the cannibals and all. In the end he had turned animalistic when he shot them all. Gwen had begged him not to end the leader's life, but one look at the state his Welshman was in was enough to drown out Gwen's request. _

_Jason had of course been at Ianto's flat when Jack and Owen arrived with the injured man. If Jack had felt guilty before, Jason took care to rub salt into the immortal's wounds. It was obvious to Jack how much Jason cherished Ianto, and he couldn't fault his new adversary for that. He had thought it odd when Ianto had told Jason that he would have been proud of him, but Jack brushed it off. It was possible the Welshman was delirious and unsure whom he was talking to. _

_ The only good things to come of the camping trip were the discovery of Ianto's competence in the field and the team's new closeness. It was nice as they all sat around Ianto's living room at the end of the day and ate pizza while trying to discuss anything but aliens. Jack hoped to cherish the memory forever._

_Jack's newfound jealousy had come into play again when Jack had told Ianto he couldn't have the day off to go help Jason. Of course Ianto had taken the day anyway, and who could blame him? Even Jack agreed that he had been kind of an ass about the whole thing. _

_Unfortunately Jack's focus on Ianto once again pulled him away from focusing his team. Fortunately though, Ianto had warned Jack that Tosh was acting odd, and this time Jack listened. Once he knew where to look he quickly figured out that that Tosh had a mind reading necklace and an alien lover, and he was able to deal with the situation without any casualties. Well, except for the alien. That night Jack wanted to make up with Ianto; he didn't want to fight anymore. So he went to Ianto's flat only to find that the Welshman wasn't there. _

_He was going to just let it go. Ianto had a right to go where ever he wanted after work. His resolve not to look and see where Ianto's car was lasted about two minutes. His heart dropped when the saw that the Welshman was at his ex-lovers home. He went through several emotions that night as he watched the screen. He considered going to the mansion and making a scene. He considered calling Ianto back to the hub, but in the end he decided to do nothing. He would ask Ianto about it in the morning. It was possible that it had been merely a friendly visit to a friend's home and nothing more, but Jack doubted it, and the disagreement the two had had the next morning seemed only to prove his suspicions to be true. _

_Jack tried several times over that next week to apologize. He had overreacted. What did it matter if Ianto slept with Jason? Hadn't he been the one to insist that they were only friends with benefits? Finally Jack had asked for forgiveness and then Ianto had asked for the same. Of course, as soon as both men were longing to have hot make-up sex a string of murders had to begin, and they never got the chance. _

_ It was over Suzie's body that the two finally made up. Ianto made an pass, Jack accepted. All that was needed was to close the deal, and the stopwatch seemed to be the ideal way to do that. After a brief fight where Jack was nearly forced to admit that he was being a possessive jerk (Ianto had called him that, but he managed to divert the man's attention with sex before he actually had to own up to his behavior) the two had a quick game of who could undress faster (Jack won), and then took their make-up party to a more comfortable venue (Jack's bed). Jack vowed, after giving Ianto his fourth orgasm, not to let his new jealous side get in the way of his relationship with Ianto again. Besides, Ianto cried Jack's name when he came, leaving no doubt in Jack's mind whom the Welshman really belonged to. _


	14. Chapter 14

AN: Thank you Taamar! You're amazing! I hope this chapter isn't confusing… I tried to give a some recap hints without retelling the whole Child story. If you're still confused most of this happened in chapter 31 of Child. Also, since we are up to the convention now the Jack segments will only be at the beginning until after the convention…. At the end of this is an Adrian segment. Hope you all enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Spoilers: ummm…. Adrift.

Warnings: Usual.

Rating: MA

**_Jack_**

_Jack was in denial and he knew it. He was convinced that it he never said the word out loud, or even in his head for that matter, then he would be safe from the pain when the inevitable happen. When he… no the thought was too much, even that could send him falling off the edge and into the mournful sea below. _

_Ianto was better to him than he deserved. Always taking care of him, and how had he repaid the kindness? He took Ianto to Flat Holm. Still, Ianto hardly even flinched despite his obvious fear of the sea. _

_Jack had seen that Ianto wasn't comfortable being in the facility, but he didn't seem to be afraid of the patients. Rather, it had appeared that Ianto could somehow feel what the patients were feeling. Jack wondered, not for the first time, if Ianto had a touch of empathy. It would explain a lot. _

_Jack sighed and looked at himself in the mirror. He bent his head and looked through his hair. He had found a gray hair last week and he was trying to make sure there weren't any more offending hairs. _

_"What are you doing?" Ianto asked as he came into the shower room. Jack looked over at his lov…friend and blushed, which was unlike him. _

_"I'm checking for gray hairs."_

_"Do you get those?" Ianto asked._

_"I found one last week," Jack sighed, still searching._

_"Well, let me see if I can find any," Ianto suggested._

_As Ianto began to search through Jack's hair the captain began to get aroused. Which was to be expected; he had always enjoyed his lov - friends playing with his hair. _

_"Was this just a ploy to get me to touch you, Jack?" Ianto questioned as if he could sense Jack's arousal._

_"I always want you to touch me, Ianto."_

_"Oh, I've really found one…"_

_"You didn't."_

_"Get on your knees… so I can see better," Ianto suggested in an innocent tone._

_Jack felt a grin form on his lips as he slid to his knees. _

_"Nope, it must have just been a trick of the light, but while you're down there?" Ianto grinned down at the immortal. _

_"You're a dirty boy, Ianto Jones," Jack said with a leer, mouthing Ianto's cock through his trousers._

_"And you're a dirty old man," Ianto retorted._

_Jack slid his hands up the back of Ianto's legs until they both rested on the Welshman's ass. "Be careful or this old man will have to teach you a lesson."_

_"I'm always eager to learn new things."_

_Jack moved his hands around Ianto's waist and to the button of the man's trousers. He made quick work of opening them and getting to the prize within. He took Ianto's already growing need instantly into his mouth and let out a quiet moan when Ianto tightened his grip on Jack's hair. Jack decided to take to the Welshman all the way in and relished in the almost primal growl that came from Ianto. He did it again and again until he was sure his young lov…friend was going to lose it then he pulled away._

_Ianto let out a clear whine. "Why - no... Don't stop," he stammered as Jack stood up._

_"I told you I was going to teach you a lesson, kid," Jack grinned._

_"Yeah, but not a cruel lesson," Ianto pouted._

_Jack put a finger over the other man's lips to silence him. "The lesson's not over yet Ianto."_

_"Oh, okay."_

_Jack grinned. "Get on your knees, I want to check and see if you have any grey hairs…"_

_"I'm far too young for those," Ianto protested._

_"No…I don't think you are."_

_Ianto grinned at Jack then sunk to his knees. Jack smiled down at him then pulled his braces off before he started to undo his own trousers then pull his own cock out. It was already hard and leaking pre cum._

_Jack watched as Ianto licked his lips. "I already know how to deep throat, Jack."_

_Jack got back on his knees and inched close to Ianto. "Put your hands on my shoulders."_

_Jack smiled when Ianto raised his eyebrow._

_"Just do it," The immortal laughed._

_Ianto put his hands on Jack shoulders and Jack put his hands on Ianto's shoulders. "Okay," Jack continued, "You need to close your eyes."_

_Ianto let out an audible sigh and complied._

_"Alright, now listen only to my voice," Jack smiled. Ianto wasn't usually one to be so gullible. _

_"Fine," Ianto replied._

_"Okay, now imagine that you called a very wise man old and he got you to get on your knees."_

_Ianto's eyes snapped open. "You're a bastard." _

_"Yeah," Jack agreed, pulling Ianto into a kiss. With a smirk Ianto toppled them to the side and poked Jack in the belly. _

_"_Dirty_ old man," accused Ianto. Jack retaliated by rolling Ianto onto his back in tickling him. _

_"You like it that way," he said as Ianto shrieked. _

_The spent the remainder of the evening touching and tickling, laughing and chasing each other around the Hub, but despite their earlier intentions they didn't have sex. They were simply having too much fun being together to care. _

**Iden Miller**

Ianto looked at the calendar in front of him on his desk. He couldn't believe that it was already a week before the convention… and two weeks until… he didn't want to think about it.

As if she could tell he was thinking about her, Aria came in to the office. She set a mug of tea down in front of her husband and let out a small sigh as she sat in the chair across from him. "So… I don't want you to be one of those overbearing parents with Ruby. Sure, set limits for her, but let her hang out with her friends, and don't flip out if she barely passes her lessons. I never did and I turned out fine."

"Aria… please," Ianto said, trying to hide the pain in his voice. He looked down into his tea. No wonder Aria had been so certain that her first life was about to end; he could barely hold it together around her.

"I need you to promise these things, Iden…" she insisted, beginning to sob. "I need to go knowing that she will be okay."

"Why are you so sure…"

"Because I know you!" she yelled. "Now please, promise me."

Ianto bit his lip. "I promise."

Aria got up. "Okay, good." She took a deep, calming breath, clapped her hands together, and wiped a tear from her face. "Now, let's not be gloomy any more, let's just be happy." She went around the desk and sat in Ianto's lap he wrapped his arms around her and sighed into her hair.

"I'd like that."

And that's what they did. They enjoyed Ruby's first Christmas and Aria's last Christmas as a family. It really was perfect. Almost.

TW—TW—TW

Ianto wanted something major to hold against Maxi at the conference, something bigger than what he already had. He went to snoop in the man's room (convenient, having him at Jason's) while preparing what he was going to say to him at the opening meeting. It had to be something to scare the piss out of the guy. Ianto had a reputation to uphold, after all. What he actually found in Maxi's room was Sean, naked and asleep in the bed.

Ianto sat down on the bed and Sean woke up with a start and cowered to the other side of the bed.

"Shh…" Ianto said gently. There were disturbing bruises all over the boy's body. Maxi was a sadist, that was for sure. "I'm not going to hurt you Sean." Ianto continued. He was reminded of the first time he met Adrian in Paris.

Ianto had never really enjoyed relocating someone. Most of the time he tried to keep his emotions under control, to appear indifferent, but that was simply because if he thought about it too much he wouldn't be able to do it. He knew that he wouldn't have this issue when it came to Max, though. He knew that when he pulled the trigger to end the man's second life it would be a happy moment for him.

"Did Mr. Oldenberg send you?" Sean asked, trying to cover himself and bringing Ianto back to the present.

"No, Max isn't even aware I'm here, and you aren't going to tell him, understand?"

Sean nodded.

"I want you to answer some questions for me though. Are you here in Maxi's bed because you want to be?"

"I… I live to serve him. He is very generous to me… I'm lucky to be his." Sean said flatly, as if he were repeating something he's been told to say.

Ianto sighed and stood up. "Sean, if I told you that you would never have to see him again how would you feel?"

"Please," Sean said, looking down, "I can't say…"

Ianto nodded. "I understand." Ianto actually did understand. He knew the difference between a willing participant and a person who was trapped. He still had nightmares from his time on the planet with two suns. "I'm sorry to inform you of this, but you can't sleep here. You haven't been formally invited to stay by the Rift Leader. So get dressed and I will escort you to a new place to stay."

Sean dressed himself quickly, and Ianto took him to the old Victorian house. He put a bodyguard in charge of him, giving the man explicit orders that Max Oldenberg wasn't to be within five hundred feet of Sean. Sean had thanked him.

TW-TW-TW

It was Christmas night, his dinner party, and the following day would be the official start of the convention. Ianto didn't want to deal with it, but he was doing his best. He put on his most charming smile and sat at the head of the table beside his wife and child. He looked over at his wife and gave her a small wink. She blushed and looked down at her plate.

Beside Aria was Liam, the leader of the Australian Rift, who appeared to be about twelve. Beside him was Amy, his second. On the other side of Amy was Xander, the leader from Peru, who was currently glaring at the Minister. Ianto was tempted to send him out of the room for it. (He could do it, if he wanted.) Beside Xander was Scarlet but Ianto kept his eyes diverted from her. Little Ianto had looked at her with a raised eyebrow of appreciation earlier and Ianto had found himself hit in the arm for it. He didn't want to know what his wife would do if she caught him looking at Scarlet.

Next to Scarlet was Gina, the heartless bitch; both were glaring. Mia sat beside her, all bubbly as usual and, to Ianto's disdain, wearing jeans. (Only a Texan would think jeans counted as semi-formal wear.) Adrian sat next to her, shifting in his seat and biting his lip. Ianto saw a grin on Jason's face at the other end of the table and wondered if Adrian's shifting was due to something going on under the table. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he ran a foot along his Aria's calf.

Ianto let his eyes fall on Little Ianto. He couldn't help but smile knowing his younger self was silently observing everyone at the table as well. People were always quick to think that the quiet ones were just shy, and maybe in some cases that was true, but Ianto had learned from his father at a very young age that a person who observes first and speaks last will hold more knowledge at the end of the day.

Sarah sat beside little Ianto looking nervous. Ianto wondered if she felt like the whole table was judging her, which was a possibility. Ianto wasn't, though; he knew Lucy was to blame for Sarah's involvement in the Reveal Rebellion. Bethan sat next to Sarah. The girl sat up on her knees; she always refused a booster seat. She was a stubborn girl, but Ianto didn't blame her. He wouldn't have accepted the indignity of a booster seat, either. Next to Bethan sat Joy Parker, the most innocent person in the room (besides Ruby, of course).

Maxi and Ryan were next. If Maxi was upset about losing access to his sex slave he hadn't let Ianto know about it. That was a wise move on Maxi's part, because Ianto really wasn't sure he could stop himself from decking the man, no matter the potential consequences.

Next to Maxi and Ryan were Carolack and Zvart the happy go lucky Germans. Ianto loved the pair. He still thought of Zvart as Father Christmas, and Carolack was the sweetest woman imaginable. Sometimes he wished he could clone them and have them run every rift. Then he would remember that he could, but that he really shouldn't.

"You have a beautiful home, Jason," Joy said to break the awkward, overbearing silence that had befallen the table after the meal had been served.

_Here we go again,_ thought Ianto. The deja-vu was overwhelming at times.

"Thank you, Joy," Jason said, "I had it remodeled about ten years ago, I was thinking it might need an update."

"Is that what Cardiff wastes money on - extravagant homes?" snapped Gina.

"Oh, leave it to an American to find fault in extravagance," Jason said, taking a sip of his wine.

"Leave it to an oppressor to find someone guilty without a fair trial!" the woman spat back.

Ianto could've had her dealt with then, but he wasn't an _oppressor _and he couldn't change things as much as he wanted to.

"Gina!" Mia warned her second.

"Minister, may I be excused?" Gina said, looking down at her plate.

"Yes," Ianto growled.

Ianto was then forced to listen to a story he had already heard before. Oh, the joys of time travel.

TW-TW-TW

Ianto sat in his office chair sipping scotch with Jason and Adrian. They were trying to unwind after the stressful dinner they had just gone through.

"Was it just me or did it seem to you guys like Maxi was angrier than normal?" Jason asked.

Adrian and Ianto exchanged looks.

"Dammit, I hate when you two leave me out of the loop. What's going on?"

"Iden found a 'lover' of Maxi's in the mansion and he removed him and put Jacobs in charge of keeping Maxi away from the man," Adrian explained.

"Come on. Why? I would be pissed too. Sex deprivation is a serious matter, you know," Jason replied, pointing a finger at Ianto and then taking a sip of scotch.

"Sean was a forced lover," Ianto explained.

Jason narrowed his eyes. "So you're telling me that right now there is a rapist under my roof?"

"Yes," Ianto sighed.

"And you're just going to let that go," Jason spat.

"Of course not, Jace," Ianto sighed, "I just can't do anything about it yet. I will, though."

Jason looked over at Adrian. "How are you handling this?" The man asked gently, taking Adrian's hand.

"I'm fine," Adrian assured him with a tight smile.

Ianto smiled down at his hands at Jason's sweet gesture, of course what the man said next made Ianto want to kick the man.

"Okay, well, this has been fun, but… I'm gonna go see if Ianto wants some company."

Ianto caught a slight drop in Adrian's smile. It was barely noticeable, but it was there.

"No, you're not." Ianto interjected. "I promise you he is preoccupied right about now."

"How?" Jason challenged.

"He's on the phone… with Jack."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Alright then, I'm going to bed."

"I'll join you," Adrian said, getting up to follow. Ianto watched as they both exited the office, considering once again how oblivious Jason was to Adrian's real feelings.

**_Adrian_**

_Adrian grabbed Jason's hand as they walked down the hall toward the staircase that would lead them to the landing of the second floor. No one was around, so Adrian was willing to accept a bit of PDA. _

_"Well, I guess tonight won't be the night we have a repeat of that night with Ianto…" Jason mused._

_Adrian stopped walking which forced Jason to stop. "Jace… I," Adrian began, knowing he should tell Jason he never wanted a repeat of that night, knowing he should say he would prefer if Jason didn't either… "I'm really tired."_

_Jason pulled Adrian closer, "We don't have to do anything but sleep."_

_"No… that's not what I meant, just I don't want it to last all night," Adrian smiled, bringing Jason's hand to his lips and kissing it gently._

_"Well, as I've said before, I can be really quick when I want to be," Jason grinned. Adrian rolled his eyes and then the pair began to walk again. _

_"So… you two keeping any more secrets from me?" Jason inquired._

_"Not that I'm aware of, but Iden always has a secret or two of his own," Adrian lied. He was usually open with his lover about all of his conversations with Iden, but the one they had had about Jason himself and who the man would choose if he had to make the decision was not one he ever planned on discussing with his lover. _

_"That's the truth," Jason agreed just as they came to the door of Jason's room. Adrian had his own room that he used when Jason was otherwise occupied, but lately he hadn't needed it much; he had been in Jason's bed nearly every night. _

_Adrian went into the room and stood by the dresser to undress. He could feel Jason's eyes on him and he blushed slightly. If there was one thing he would never doubt it was how attractive he was to Jason. Of course Jason was attracted to a lot of people, but Adrian liked to believe the current look his lover was giving him was all his. _

_Jason's hand came in contact with the Frenchman's back as soon as it was bare. "So perfect," Jason stated, sending goose bumps up Adrian's spine. _

_"Jason," Adrian began as Jason moved closer and began to gently kiss Adrian's exposed neck._

_"Hmm…"_

_"If, and this is a totally hypothetical question, but if I wanted you all to myself…what would you say?"_

_"That you're going to have to get used to having a lot more sex," Jason muttered as he brought his hands to Adrian's front to undo the button of the man's trousers._

_"We have a lot already."_

_"Yeah, but that's nothing compared to how much I have…"Jason growled, his hand dipping into Adrian's now open trousers and rubbing his cock through his underwear._

_Adrian was beginning to lose coherent thought, and he didn't want to know exactly how much sex Jason had, anyway. It hardly mattered; he knew he didn't have to share Jason's affections nearly as much as he had to share Jason's sex life, and that's what he really cared about. "Yes, well, good thing it was just a hypothetical sort of question," he moaned out. _

_"Yeah," Jason agreed. "I'll understand if you don't want this right now," Jason continued, moving his hand into Adrian's underwear and gently gripping the already hardening cock within. "But I really want to tie you up." _

_Adrian had found that Jason's response to feeling insecure or out of control was to take control back by asserting it over another, and Adrian was pleased and proud to be the one he turned to most often. He pulled away from his lover and turned to face him. "You never have to ask, I trust you to have total control over me."_

_Jason nodded. "I trust you, too." He replied gently caressing Adrian's cheek. "Now take off your trousers and kneel in front of the bed." He added with a hint of a smile. _

_Adrian first kissed Jason's palm then he pulled away and finished undressing. Once that task was complete he knelt in front of the bed. Adrian then had a panicked feeling go through him. What if Ianto did decide to come in the room what was stopping that from happening._

_"Jason, since you are obviously going to bind me would you lock the door, please? I don't want anyone but you to see me that way," Adrian insisted._

_"I've already done it," Jason reassured him. Adrian felt his lover kneel behind him. "I want to be the only one who knows who sexy you look all bound up tight." He growled. Jason's hand gripped Adrian's hair and pulled him back into a demanding kiss. Adrian moaned into it his hands going behind his back to touch Jason's toned stomach. _

_Jason pulled away from the kiss and Adrian heard him step away. Adrian knew the man was in the closet picking the rope he would use on him._

_"You're so good to me," Jason said when he came back. Adrian stayed still as Jason began to wrap a small section of rope around his wrists. "Always willing to give me whatever I need."_

_"Anything for you," Adrian replied as Jason moved to wrap the rope around his torso. This was normally when Jason would open up about what was making him feel out of control. It was like a therapy session, except Adrian was the therapist and he was being tied up. _

_"I hate that there are so many people in my house, and tomorrow more will come and it will be even worse. Plus I'll have to be nice to everyone, pretend I want them here, in my comfort zone, and I can assure you I don't."_

_"I know, mon cher," Adrian cooed as Jason helped him to his feet and he turned around, now truly bound up tight._

_"You always know," Jason smiled, gently lowering Adrian down onto the bed. He began to kiss down the Frenchman's body, making sure to touch every piece of flesh that wasn't covered with rope. _

_Adrian would have replied, but he couldn't think straight. Feeling his lover's lips on his body was distractingly erotic, especially when said lover was edging closer and closer to a very needy area. Jason didn't even try to tease; he just took Adrian into his mouth as if rewarding him. "You're amazing," he said. _

_"Jason, I'm not going to last much longer if you keep that up," Adrian moaned. Jason pulled away and grinned up at him. _

_"You really know how to lift a guy's self-esteem. I've barely touched you."_

_"You're just really good at it, Jace," Adrian said, breathing hard. Jason chuckled then got off the bed. He grabbed the lube off the side table then got back on the bed and flipped Adrian to his stomach. Adrian turned his head to the side so that the sounds he knew he would be making wouldn't be muffled; he knew how much Jason enjoyed it when he was vocal. And Jason seemed to like it even more if Adrian was vocal in French. _

_ Jason always took great care when he prepared Adrian, a thing that Adrian assumed the man did for all his partners, but he had seen Jason take little care with Ianto on the night he didn't want to even think about. Adrian hadn't known what to make of that, but eventually concluded that it must be dependent on the partner. Adrian required the extra attention; Ianto obviously didn't. _

_Adrian moaned out a sting of colorful French words as he felt his lover enter him. He cherished moments like these when Jason was as close to him as physically possible. _

_"Are you ready?" Jason asked as he always did. _

_"Yes," Adrian replied._

_Jason was right: he could be quick when he wanted to. _


	15. Chapter 15

AN: Okay here it is chapter 15. I have to thank Taamar… she's so amazing. J

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood

Spoilers: None

Rating: MA

Warnings: Usual.

**_Jack_**

_Jack breathed a sigh of relief when he disconnected his call with Ianto. He felt bad for what he had done, placing a tracking device on his Welshman's luggage, but he just hadn't believed the whole 'I'm going to see my Aunt' story. And Jack had been right not to believe; Ianto's luggage had never even entered the airport. No, Ianto and his luggage were currently at the residence of Jason Sims. _

_Jack was tempted, sorely tempted, to rush off to Jason's and catch Ianto in yet another lie, but he had decided to use his head instead, which was why he called Ianto and kept up the pretense that he still believed Ianto was out of town. The phone sex episode had been a test, of sorts. It was Jack's hope that Ianto wouldn't have gone along with it had he been in Jason's bed. _

_So Jack decided that the reason Ianto lied was to protect Jack. Ianto needed to spend time with his friend for the holiday, for whatever reason, and he hadn't wanted Jack to become jealous over the fact, and Jack tried hard not to be. But why on earth did Ianto need to spend a whole week with his ex? Why? What was so special about Jason Sims? Jack got up out of his bed. He was too angry to try and sleep (anger wasn't jealousy, right?). He started to pace, naked in his little bunker. Images of Ianto flashed in his mind. What the man must have looked like when he came earlier, if he had. He wondered if Ianto was asleep in Jason's arms. No he bet they weren't even considering sleep yet, he bet their bodies were now moving as one…_

_Jack looked down and realized that his body had reacted to the images in his mind even as his heart clenched in agony._ Damnit_. _

**Iden Miller**

Ianto sat up in his bed and watched his wife sleep. She was adorable in her sleep, there was just a tiny bit of drool coming out of her semi-open mouth and every once in a while she'd let out a small snore. What amazed him the most about the way Aria slept was that she never seemed to have nightmares. She would even smile sometimes.

Today was the official start of the convention and Ianto just wanted to stop time, even if it was just for a short while. He just wanted to watch his wife sleep peacefully for five more minutes, then he would get up and get ready for the morning's meeting. He put his hand out and gently wiped away the small amount of drool from his wife's cheek. It caused her to stir and soon her blue eyes were staring into his.

"Hey," he whispered.

"Hey."

"Did you have pleasant dreams?"

"Umm… would you consider the Chippendale dancers cleaning the house a pleasant dream?"

Ianto grinned, "Oh yes."

"Then yes, it was very pleasant."

"What are your plans for this morning?" Ianto asked.

Aria smiled. "Well, I need to go feed a little monkey some bananas."

Ianto smiled. "Oh, I forgot about that. Ruby likes to throw bananas. Hey, when you're down there. Ianto's going to come in and make some coffee, then Jason's going to come in. You make sure you tell him to stop when… well you'll know. Ruby doesn't need to see that."

"Alright," Aria yawned then looked over at the clock. "Oh look! We have a good thirty minutes before our little princess wakes…. What ever shall we do with the time?"

"Oh… I don't know, we could read, I guess," Ianto grinned.

Aria pulled him down on to the bed and straddled him. "I have other plans."

TW-TW-TW

Ianto stood at the long table at the end of the meeting room. He was feeling a bit irritated. He shouldn't have to spend his last few days with his wife in boring meetings, but he was stuck. Little Ianto came into the room and began to look around uncertainly. Ianto caught the eye of his younger self and gestured to the spot beside Adrian. The boy looked a little apprehensive and Ianto vaguely remembered that he had been nervous. Oh well, Little Ianto would be fine. Ianto was living proof of that. He laughed at himself in his head. He most definitely wasn't 'fine'. Not today.

"Minister, I need to do your mic," Tatya, one of the sound girls, said in a nervous tone.

"Yes, thank you," Ianto smiled, turning toward her. She clipped it to his jacket. "Tatya, where are you originally from?" Ianto asked, trying to ease her obvious nervous state. If there was one thing he hated about being minister it was how others were always skittish around him. He was just a normal bloke, wasn't he?

"Umm… Originally I'm from Kiev, sir," Tatya replied.

"Oh yeah, that's where Rift Leader Sims is from. What year were you there?"

"3002, sir."

"Interesting, that means it will open again. I've always wondered if maybe the rifts were like oceans. You know opening then closing then opening… so on and so forth. Of course oceans take a long time to open and a long time to close. The Pacific, for example, is in the process of closing while the Atlantic is opening. Fascinating really if you think about it. "

Tatya had finished the mic and now she was just nodding politely. Oh well, Ianto thought it was interesting. "Thank you, Tatya."

"You're very welcome Minister," she smiled, nodding once more and then heading to attach Ryan's mic to him.

Once the mics were all in place Jason went to stand behind the podium that was set up in the middle of the long table. He put some papers down onto its surface. "Good morning, everyone, if you could all take your seats, we can get started."

There was some murmuring and shuffling as people settled, then it was quiet and they were ready to begin.

"I would like to start off by welcoming all of our out-of-town guests. I know I represent every member of the Cardiff Rift when I say we are honored to host this year's convention. I would also like to invite you all to the opening ceremony tonight. These conventions aren't just about the meetings. They are also a way for us to get to know members of other Rifts, so please come out tonight. Eat, drink, and be merry. I will now give the floor over to our Minister, Iden Miller."

Ianto went to the podium and straightened his tie. "Thank you, Jason," he said with a fake smile at Jason; Ianto was still a bit peeved at the man for disregarding Adrian's feelings the night before. "Today's meetings will be focused solely on the needs and issues of the Las Vegas Rift. In this first one we will go over the most important issue. I would like to point out that comments and ideas are accepted at certain times. You will need to raise your hand during those times and a microphone will be brought to you. I will have you thrown out if you try to comment while someone is speaking. For those of you who have attended these meetings before, you know I am not bluffing.

"So, to begin, the Las Vegas Rift has become more active over the last year. There have been a series of alien sightings. Thus far, the Rift Children themselves have been taking care of the issue. Today we need to decide if we are going to let them continue to handle it on their own or if we are going to tip off a government agency about it. Maximillion, if you would like to begin," Ianto gestured towards the man.

Maxi stayed in his seat and began, "I believe that Rift Children of Las Vegas already have too much on their plates. We need to bring in outside help."

Little Ianto raised his hand. Ianto smiled at him.

Adrian whispered something that only little Ianto could hear and little Ianto put his hand down.

"If you do bring in 'outside help', sir, it will only add to the amount of work you will have to do, not take away from it," Little Ianto said in a polite tone. Ianto wished he could tell his younger self not to waste his time being polite to Max.

"So, you're saying there has never been a time when Cardiff wasn't happy to have Torchwood," Ryan said.

"Oh, of course there have, but there have been many more times when we weren't," Jason said.

"If you are so unhappy with Torchwood, why not take them out?" Maxi asked.

"Because it's an unnecessary risk and barbaric," Little Ianto answered. That was true, plus Ianto was sure that UNIT would catch wind, and while the Rift Children could most likely deal with the members of Torchwood, there would be no way to win if they had the whole of UNIT coming down on them.

"Of course, because Torchwood isn't barbaric," Ryan said.

Ianto felt fire run through his blood. A fire he could see running though his younger self as well.

"We aren't here to discuss Torchwood Cardiff." Ianto stated firmly looking between Little Ianto and Ryan. "I have to say that my vote falls to set up Rift Children in Las Vegas to do the job that Torchwood does here. Just like it is an unnecessary risk to take out Torchwood here in Cardiff, it is also too much of a risk to let them know about Nevada's alien problems. I will open the floor up for comments, however."

Joy Parker was the first to raise her hand. A sound guy took her a microphone. "I would like to say that I agree with the Minister. I am sure you are all aware of who I am, and about my brief stay at Torchwood. The director then was horrible. Of course, I would like to point out that Jack Harkness, the current director, is nothing like that woman. He saved me the only way he could and I will be eternally grateful to him. But he is an exception to the rule. If you were to bring in a form of Torchwood, there's no telling what they would be like. You would be running the risk of someone falling into their hands much like I did. You can't possibly want that." She handed the microphone back to the sound guy and sat back down. Ianto couldn't help the smile that grew onto his face.

"Right now I am risking Rift Children every day!" Maxi snapped.

"So you would prefer normal humans, who are much more fragile, to risk their only lives?" Little Ianto asked. Ianto was proud of his younger self.

"They aren't my concern," Maxi retorted. "We have a responsibility to our own kind."

"Maxi, you have a point," Ianto said calmly though on the inside he was fuming, "our main goal is to protect Rift Children from detection, bringing in some government agency would be too risky. Therefore, in order to protect our own kind, I have reached the decision that we will be setting up our own team in Las Vegas. I will overlook the project myself."

"Are we not a democracy?" Maxi shouted. Several body guards that were located along the wall stood up from their chairs.

Ianto held up his hand to urge them to sit back down (seriously, he could handle this himself), "We are, Max, of course. I believe you were one of the members that elected me nearly 75 years ago. These are merely decisions that I was elected to make."

"Maybe it's time you retire?" Maxi said, standing up. The body guards scrambled to their feet again. What Maxi had just said was as good as a death threat.

Ianto didn't put up his hand to stop the guards this time, but he did take off the microphone that Tatya had placed on him before he walked over to whisper in Maxi's ear. "That boy says you raped and beat him. He also tells me you're running a whore house, but none of that matters really. You won't be heading back to Vegas in this life, Maxi. No, by the end of this week your blood will be on my hands. And for the first time ever, I will smile when I do it. Don't push me."

Ianto walked back to the podium, placed the microphone back in place, and waved the body guards away again. He straightened his tie. "The floor is open if anyone has anything to add."

Tink stood up on her chair rather than raise her hand. The sound guy brought her the microphone. "How many Children do you propose will be needed for the team?"

"Ianto?" Ianto said referring to his younger self. He could easily have answered the question himself, but some of his Torchwood days were a bit fuzzy. So unless the whole room wanted to hear about his sexcapdes with Jack (which he did remember clearly, and often), it was better to let Little Ianto handle it.

"Umm, Torchwood Cardiff currently has five members, the director, the medical officer, tech specialist, a field agent, and a support officer. As it stands right now, their jobs all overlap. The medical officer doubles as a field agent, for example. I would propose to at least double that number for the Vegas team. It would be safer." Little Ianto explained.

"What about technology?" Adrian asked. "I know Torchwood has it—do we have access to that sort of thing without putting Cardiff's undercover agent at risk?"

Ianto smiled toward his best friend. The man already knew the answer to that; Adrian was just trying to get in better graces with the younger Ianto. This was a hopeful development.

"Yes, we have a warehouse full of tech that we 'acquired' when Torchwood London fell," Jason said.

Ianto saw confusion pass over his younger self's face. It was cute really, Ianto himself was the one to steal most of the tech from Torchwood One.

The questions continued for a while. It wasn't surprising that Maxi had no more to add the rest of the meeting. A committee was decided upon to help Ianto with the planning that the new endeavor would require, then Ianto released the room for lunch, thankful to be done with the first meeting and anxious to get his wife alone for what few minutes he could spare.

TW-TW-TW

"You have a bit of mayo on your chin," Aria grinned at her husband.

Ianto narrowed his eyes then reached for his napkin. Aria got to him first however and licked the offending condiment off him.

"Aria was there really mayo on me or did you just want to lick my chin?"

"You'll never know. Pity really, because now you no longer know everything."

Ianto smiled and shrugged. "What's one fact among a thousand?"

"I love you, Iden," Aria said in an almost mournful tone.

"I love you too," replied Ianto.

TW-TW-TW

Jason had a way of cornering Ianto when the Welshman least expected it. And inside one of the guest bathrooms was a very least expected place.

"You should really lock the door," Jason grinned as he closed and locked the bathroom door behind himself.

Ianto sighed and did up his pants, trying and failing to prevent Jason from taking a quick peek. "Why is it I can't even take a piss in privacy anymore?"

"Whisper in my ear Ianto," Jason grinned.

Ianto raised his eyebrow, "Excuse me?"

"Show me you know how to scare a man just by whispering in his ear," Jason explained.

Ianto grinned. His memory was a bit foggy but he was now remembering the conversation. He still remembered what he had said to Jason during his first life. _First it's all 'Ianto, whisper in my ear' then it'll escalate to 'Ianto, ride my cock.' I know you. "_Jason, I know you even better now than I did well… now."

Jason took a step closer and put a hand on Ianto's cheek. "Prove it."

Ianto took the challenge and took a step closer to Jason, he bent forward ever so slightly so he could whisper in Jason's ear, "Mia said she hates your house, thinks it's too extravagant. Thinks the color you picked for the dining room screams of a man who is overcompensating for something."

"What are you saying?" Jason inquired.

"That everyone thinks you have a small—"

Jason pulled away. "That's enough, don't you dare continue."

Ianto smiled. "No one thinks that, Jace."

"You play dirty…"

"I learned from the best." Ianto smiled as he unlocked the door and left Jason behind.

**_Adrian_**

_Adrian hated parties. He really did, but he loved Jason, so when Jason suggested they go out and enjoy it he had gone along with it. Mia, of course, was corrupting Ianto, not that he needed it. Adrian had never seen his best friend get so drunk. He had never seen his best friend lose his inhibitions, and now he was forced to._

_What he wanted to do was drag Ianto into the house and put him to bed. He wanted to yell and tell him that the way he was behaving wasn't the way a Minister should behave. Then he remembered that the Ianto before him wasn't the Minister yet, so maybe he should cut the kid a bit of slack. _

_Adrian's calm acceptance of Ianto's drunken exploits lasted until he started giving Jason a lap dance (and where the hell had he learned that, anyway?) Then Adrian was sure Ianto's first relocation would be 'death by Frenchman'. Adrian held it together until Ianto pulled Jason in for a kiss, at which point he couldn't sit in the background any longer. He walked closer to Jason and, despite the fact that they were surrounded by people, he put a hand on his lover's back._

_"He's so drunk," Jason laughed as Ianto pulled away from him and staggered back to the bartender he had been snogging for drinks all night despite the fact that it was an open bar… and that the bartender kept insisting he was straight._

_"I agree, perhaps I should take him to his room, before he does something he will regret?"_

_"Maybe that's what I'm hoping for," Jason winked._

_"No you weren't."_

_"No, okay, you take him, I don't trust myself." _

_"Good call," Adrian replied, patting his lover gently. "Would you like to meet me in your room, or do you have plans?"_

_"I have plans with you and this tie," Jason grinned up at Adrian, twisting his fingers in the tie Ianto had left around his neck. _

_"I'm looking forward to it." Adrian smiled. And really he was. He always felt safe when Jason tied him up. _

_Jason grabbed Adrian's hand and kissed it gently._

_Adrian bent down and tenderly kissed his lovers lips before slipping away and gently taking Ianto's hand, leading him into the house. _

_"Where are we going?" Ianto asked._

_"It's time to go to bed."_

_"Oh, already? I'm having fun," Ianto pouted._

_"I saw. Let's go get some water and I'll help you to your bed."_

_"Your bed?"_

_"No."_

_"I don't like to sleep alone," Ianto explained._

_Adrian sighed and leaned Ianto against the counter in the kitchen. He began to walk toward the fridge when Ianto grabbed his arm. "You're very attractive," he slurred._

_"Umm…thanks." Adrian replied. He took his arm back and walked to the fridge. Ianto followed and wrapped his arms around the Frenchman's waist and then, to Adrian's horror, the Welshman began to gently kiss his neck and, to his continued horror, he let out a moan. No question at all where Ianto had learned this skill. _

_Ianto pulled away and turned Adrian around and pressed his lips to Adrian's. It wasn't until Adrian felt a hand on his ass that he came to his senses and pushed Ianto away._

_"No, bad," Adrian said pointing at the younger version of his best friend._

_"Don't you like them bad?" Ianto grinned. Adrian decided the liquor and Ianto Jones shouldn't mix. _

_"Oh, Mr. Jones, you couldn't handle me," Adrian chided. _

_Ianto took a step forward and pushed Adrian up against the fridge, and their lips crashed together again. Adrian was regretting his decision to drink those ten shots now. Even in his second life he seemed to be a lightweight._

_It was a hand on his crotch that brought him back to reality this time, and he once again pushed Ianto away. He didn't know what was wrong with him; he usually had no attraction to his best friend. He moved away from Ianto and began to edge toward the exit. He felt ashamed that he had felt such arousal for the young version of his friend; he needed to get away, get back to Jason, where things made sense. _

_"You can make it to bed yourself, I'm sure," he said. Adrian quickly he left the kitchen, going straight to Jason's room and into the bathroom. That was where Jason found him fifteen minutes later. _

_"Hey, did you get Ianto to bed okay?"_

_Adrian looked over at his lover with wide eyes. "Umm… yeah, he's fine."_

_"Thank you, he gets a bit…"_

_"Slutty when he's drunk?"_

_"Yeah, that's one way to put it," Jason laughed, coming to stand behind Adrian and nibbling gently on his neck. "I think we made some previous plans," he breathed into his lover's ear._

_"Yeah," _

_"First though, I want to know why you didn't give me a lap dance." Jason said. Adrian loved his pout, but he needed to make sure there were still some boundaries. _

_"There's not enough tequila in the world to make me give you a lap dance in front of all those people."_

_"How about a private one then?" Jason whispered. _

_Adrian grinned at his and Jason's reflection in the mirror. A private one couldn't hurt. _


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Chapter 16…. Okay I adore Taamar… The work she puts into the story is amazing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Rating: MA

Warnings: usual

Spoilers: none

**_Jack_**

_Jack had been okay last night when Ianto answered his phone call, but now he wasn't. No, tonight Ianto hadn't answered. It was ridiculous how upset he was, really. So the man didn't answer his phone. He was probably just busy. But busy doing what? Jason?_

_No, this had to stop. Jack Harkness wasn't the jealous type. Jack Harkness was the more the merrier type. He was going to get in the SUV, drive to Jason's, and if he found that his Welshman was in Jason's bed then he was going to try to join them. End of story. Do not pass go, do not collect two hundred dollars. Ménages à trois had to be making a comeback soon, and he seemed like the right guy to begin that trend. He didn't even care that it was nearly five am, didn't care that he hadn't slept in nearly thirty hours; he just wanted Ianto… even if he had to share. _

_So with a semi-plan in mind (no pun intended) he drove toward Jason Sims's mansion. He parked the SUV behind a sign that said, or was supposed to say, 'Sims Home for Wayward Teens', though a few of the letters were missing. Jack studied the sign for a moment. Had Ianto been one of those teens? Had Jason taken in a seventeen year old boy and fallen in love with him? He wondered if they ever role played… okay his mind was getting way off track. It was time for him to focus, so Jack started to make the journey down the long driveway and then he stopped again._

_The mansion was lit up with security lights, and Jack could see guards walking the perimeter. _

Is the Prime Minister there, or something?_ Jack asked himself. Why would Jason Sims need that much security? Was he running some kind of illegal business? Was he a mobster? Did Wales have mobsters, or were they called something different? _Walesters_… Jack giggled to himself. _Well, no time like the present to find out, Jack_ thought._

_Jack put Ianto's hero Bond to shame as he snuck into the highly secured mansion. Of course, it could have been because the guard at the door thought he was a late arrival to the opening party… _Whatever that meant_._

_He made it as far as the kitchen before he was surrounded by four security guards who were armed to the teeth. Jack had never seen even UNIT agents with that amount of weaponry… _These boys are obviously overcompensating_, Jack thought._

_ He held up his hands in surrender and was led underground to what looked like an interrogation room. "Curiouser and curiouser," he said when the door to the room was shut behind him._

**Iden Miller**

"Minister," someone whispered. Ianto tried to ignore it. "Minister."

"Iden, deal with it," Aria grumbled.

Ianto sighed and rose up in bed. A man dressed in all black was standing at the foot of his bed; Ianto recognized one of the guards that Jason had insisted be there. "What?" Ianto snapped. The man was way over armed. _Overcompensating, _Ianto thought.

"We had a security breach sir. The prisoner…."

"Prisoner?" Oh, damn. Ianto didn't want to deal with this. He just wanted to sleep.

"Yes, sir. We didn't know what to do with him, so we have him in the basement, sir."

Ianto sighed and got out of bed. He decided maybe he needed to reflect on the saying 'no rest for the wicked.'

"Is he a Rift Child?" Ianto yawned.

"No, sir… but I don't think he's normal either. I touched him to bring him down the stairs….and I felt his anger."

Ianto got a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. There was only one person he knew who could cause that reaction in a Rift Child. "Go back to sleep dear," he whispered to Aria, who already seemed to be half way there. He then looked back at the guard. "I will meet you down there. Don't wake anyone else."

"Yes, sir," the guard agreed, then left the room. Ianto went to the closet and pulled on a suit. He then opened a vault that he had on the floor and pulled out his specially made medications. He sighed, realizing he was going to have to Retcon his lover. Again. He hoped Jack wasn't beginning to become immune to it.

Slowly he made his way down to Jason's basement where he found two guards waiting outside the door to one of the interrogation rooms. Ianto assumed that was where they were keeping the 'prisoner'.

"Sir, we've taken all his belongings. He has several separate ID cards, all with different names. He also had this. It seems to be alien technology." The guard who had awakened him explained holding up Jack's vortex manipulator.

"Thank you. Is he restrained?"

"Yes, sir."

"Alright, I will be going in alone," Ianto informed the man.

"Yes, sir."

The man stepped aside and Ianto went into the room. His breath caught slightly when he saw Jack. He hadn't seen the man up close in so long. He looked exactly the same, of course, except that at the moment he looked pretty pissed. He was really hot when he was pissed, though. _Must not get distracted._

"Ianto, what the fuck is going on? Is Jason a mobster or something?" Jack yelled, bringing Ianto back to reality and away from the road his mind had been traveling.

Ianto sat down in a chair in front of Jack. "I can assure you that Jason isn't a 'mobster'."

"Well then what's…? You've got a scar on your face." Jack said trying to move his hand up to touch Ianto, but his hands were secured to the table so all that happened was the small chain made a clinking sound. _Jack with his hands bound. Oh god, what a thought. Focus, damnit!_

Ianto nodded. "Observant of you to notice, Jack."

"You didn't have that yesterday morning."

"Also observant."

"You're not Ianto, but… you are."

"I'm Ianto in his future."

"Alright future Ianto… how did you get the scar?"

"Jack, why are you here at Jason's" Ianto asked, avoiding the question. It's not like Jack would remember if Ianto told him, he just didn't want to relive his first death at the moment.

"How'd you get that scar?" Jack repeated.

"Jack! I'm in charge here, not you. Now why are you here?"

"To figure out what my employee was keeping from me."

"Just an employee?"

"Yes. Now."

"I see…" Ianto replied, looking down at his hands.

"No, I'm not going to give in to your Welsh moaning."

Ianto smiled. "You like my moaning."

"You need to tell me what's going on here, Ianto," Jack said in a serious tone.

"It wouldn't make any difference if I did, Jack. You're not going to remember this."

"Ianto, I'll figure it out. No matter how many times you Retcon me, I _will_ figure it out."

Ianto, unable to stop himself any longer, reached out and gripped one of Jack's secure hands. "I'm kinda like you Jack… very hard to kill." _Please take it better this time. Please, Jack. _

"Well, I'm pretty easy to kill Ianto, I just don't stay dead."

"Nor do I."

Jack's small smile turned to a frown. "What?"

"Jack, I'm a Child of the Rift. It's very difficult to explain."

"Explain anyway."

Ianto looked up into Jack's eyes. "The rift has a sort of adverse effect on pregnant women, Jack. All rifts do. On rare occasions the child becomes saturated with… hmmm… you could say with Rift Energy. The child grows normally, ages normally, until they die… after which their bodies are taken by the rift. They are transported through time or space and spit out again, only they come out less fragile. Stronger, unable to get sick, and hard to kill."

Ianto felt his heart break at the anger he could see in his lover's eyes. "You've been inside Torchwood as a spy all along then?"

"Yes. I started at Torchwood London, then when… My ultimate goal was to save Lisa, you have to understand that Jack. I wasn't selling Torchwoods secrets, I was just protecting…. Everyone."

"Ianto, this is another thing like the Lisa situation. I need to put a stop to this. People traveling randomly through time… its dangerous, it can lead to…"

"Oh Jack, please stop, you're being ridiculous and you know it. These people have been traveling through time since the beginning of time. Since the first rift opened. The universe is just fine."

"How many of your kind are there?" _'Your kind'. Fuck._

Ianto sighed and let go of his lover's hand. It was the same as before. There was no point… he could only hope that after little Ianto died Jack would be so happy to see him that he would be able to listen to reason. He opened the leather case of medication he had sitting beside him on the table and he pulled out a syringe with enough Retcon (his own formula) to wipe a good twelve hours from Jack's memories, With one last sigh he injected it into Jack's arm.

He only realized after Jack had been removed from the mansion that he never had never gotten the answer to why Jack was at Jason's in the first place.

**TW-TW-TW**

Ianto sat in his office chair and cried into his cup of tea. Adrian was gently rubbing his back and Jason was pacing in front of Ianto's desk.

"You should have let one of us handle it." Jason said for what had to be the tenth time. "You've put yourself through agony that could've been avoided. I'd have spared you the pain if I could."

"I know," Ianto hiccupped through his tears. He was well aware that it would have been much easier to send one of them in. At least they would have found out why Jack had come to Jason's not screwed it up because they got lost in their soul mate's eyes.

"Well then why didn't you?"

"Jason!" Adrian growled. "Stop it. Your charge is hurting, this isn't the way you handle that!"

Ianto heard Jason sigh. "You're right, I'm sorry. Come here, Yan."

Ianto got up and walked around the desk, Jason pulled him into a hug. "I'm sorry you're hurting." Jason murmured, running his hand through Ianto's hair. Ianto sobbed onto Jason's shoulder.

"He said 'your kind' like we're aliens, but we're not… we are humans." Ianto whimpered.

"I know, I wish there was something I could do to make him understand it for you."

Ianto shook his head. "He never will understand. I'm going to have to live forever without him. Forever alone."

Ianto felt another body wrap around him from behind. "Tu ne seras jamais seul," Adrian whispered.

"He's right," Jason agreed, "You will never be alone."

The three stood there in a clinging together until Ianto's sobs finally started to subside. Adrian was the first to pull away, gently patting his best friend's shoulder. "So… do you remember anything about last night from your first life?"

"Ummm…. No," Ianto replied, now hyperaware that he has still holding onto Jason. He pulled away out of respect for Adrian.

"You gave me a lap dance," Jason grinned.

"Yeah, Mia will tell little Ianto about it." Ianto said, diverting his eyes away from Adrian.

"Oh, god, you do remember. Iden, I'm so sorry… It just happened, I tried not to… but I mean, I drank a bit too… please we can just pretend it didn't happen like the time I kissed you in France?"

"What's this about kissing in France?" Jason chimed.

"Okay, I don't think I know what you're talking about Adrian," Ianto said with confusion, ignoring Jason's comment altogether. "I don't actually remember last night, I just remember what Mia told me."

"Oh, well in that case never mind."

"Spill it, Frenchie," Ianto smiled.

"Ianto and I kinda made out in the kitchen."

"Oh cool, I have cameras in the kitchen."

"Shut it, Jace," Ianto and Adrian snapped in unison.

"Well, I did a lot of crazy things then. Little Ianto tried to give me a blow job in the guest bathroom."

Jason's head whipped around. "In front of the vanity or in front of the toilet?" Jason demanded.

"Jace!" Ianto and Adrian snapped again.

"I guess you win the 'that's just wrong' award then." Adrian sighed

"Yeah, that's nice, I'm gonna go check the security cameras." Jason chimed, skipping out the door. Ianto and Adrian locked eyes then rolled them in unison. Ianto was glad he had Adrian and Jason, with them he knew he really never would be alone.

**TW-TW-TW**

Ianto closed the door to his old room then sat down on the bed next to his crying younger self. Shit had just hit the fan between Adrian and little Ianto, and although part of Ianto was hoping that he would have to send Jason back into his bedroom when the man went to follow little Ianto instead of going straight to Adrian, he had been wrong, Jason had gone straight to Adrian without Ianto having to order it. "Adrian is the best thing for him, Ianto," Ianto explained both to his younger self and, well, his self.

"I know. It just feels like it's finally over, you know. I've been avoiding this closure. It's the reason I left him without saying goodbye. I loved him so much and he hurt me, but it's so hard to let go." Little Ianto was openly sobbing now, Ianto was sure the only reason he wasn't was because he had cried enough already that day. "He loves Adrian, whether he admits it or not, and as petty as it is I don't want him to love anyone but me," Little Ianto continued, mirroring his older self's feelings in a way. Only Ianto now wanted Jason to love Adrian, but maybe still love Ianto a tiny bit more.

Ianto pulled his young self into a hug. "This is the one time someone is going to say 'I know how you feel' and actually mean it." Little Ianto chuckled through his tears. "It's not the end for you, though, alright? It may be for him and me now, but not you." Little Ianto looked up, no doubt seeing the tears that had fallen onto Ianto's cheeks. "Skip the rest of today, okay? Go hang out with Aria and Ruby."

Little Ianto nodded. "That sounds good."

"I wish I could skip and just be with Aria the rest of the day, but I can't." Ianto sighed getting up and heading to the door. "You can't change things, as much as you will want to. You just can't."

"I know." Little Ianto agreed. If he only knew what he was agreeing to.

**_Jason_**

_"Adrian, open the door and we can talk about this," Jason yelled through his bathroom door. This was ridiculous, it wasn't even his fight, but something about the way Adrian had looked at Jason before retreating to the bathroom made him worry that maybe it had more to do with him than he thought._

_"Wouldn't you rather check and make sure that Ianto is okay?" Adrian's voice spat back. He sounded really angry. Jason felt a deep fear build inside him. How long had Adrian been unhappy? Was Iden right? Had he been ignoring his most trusted companion's feelings?_

_Jason looked toward the door that Ianto had vacated. Why hadn't he followed the Welshman? He loved him after all. It was a deep true love... but Ianto had laid his cards on the table right before he stormed out of the room: he was always going to want Jack. Also, the way that Ianto had called Adrian a 'boy-toy' had really pissed him off. He'd trained the boy better than to spit out such derogatory terms. Especially if the person didn't deserve it. Though to be fair Adrian had referred to Ianto as a whore… but that wasn't really the point at the moment._

_Jason looked back toward the bathroom. Is that what Adrian thought he was to Jason? A toy? No… Jason had never acted as if he was. He had always given Adrian more care than he did any of his other bed partners. Oh god…but if Adrian thought that, was this the beginning of the end for them? He had depended on Adrian to be there for twenty-five years now. Adrian was the one he always went to when he was upset. The only one who truly understood him. He couldn't lose Adrian. "I want to be with you Adrian, I want to make sure you're okay. I…" he paused. Had he really been about to say he loved Adrian? Did he love Adrian? Of course he did._

_"You what?" Adrian called breaking Jason from his thoughts._

_"I love you, okay? Very much… now please open the door."_

_The door slowly cracked open and Adrian looked out the small gap. "You've never said that before."_

_"Well, I kinda just realized it…" said Jason, feeling beyond guilty for being such an ass and never saying the words out loud, or even admitting them to himself. But he knew the reason. In his first life he had loved man who looked similar to Adrian, but wasn't Adrian at all… and when he had confessed his love for that man it had ended badly._

_"Oh really takes you twenty-five years to realize you love me… Jerk," Adrian growled, closing the door again._

_"Adrian… mon cher… please open the door so we can talk."_

_"How long did it take you to realize you loved Ianto… the little one?"_

_"You're trying to compare apples to oranges…" It was a different love. Ianto needed Jason… but Jason needed Adrian._

_"How long!" Adrian roared._

_"I'm not answering the question until you come out of there so we can discuss this like adults."_

_Adrian opened the door and threw a compact mirror, narrowly missing Jason's face, then slammed the door closed again._

_"This is why we can't have nice things!" Jason yelled._

_"We have tons of nice things!" Adrian yelled back._

_Jason sighed and leaned his head against the door. "Adrian, I don't want to lose you… I would do anything not to. Anything at all. I'll be celibate if you want… anything you ask. I just want to talk to you." He knew he would. If he had to go on forever living the life of a monk just to have Adrian beside him he'd do it._

_Adrian opened the door. "You wouldn't last a week celibate… you'd end up killing the whole of Cardiff."_

_"I'd do it… for you."_

_Adrian reached his hand out and gently caressed Jason's chin. "Would you give up Iden?"_

_"How do you mean?"_

_"I don't mind… you know, when you have sex with random people, because I know they aren't as important to you as I am… but Iden is a separate story. You love him more than me, and it hurts."_

_"I don't think there is a way to measure love, mon amor."_

_"So is that a no then?"_

_Jason stepped closer to Adrian and put a hand on either side of his face. "I will not try to sleep with Iden anymore; I will also try not to flirt with him. I never want to cause you pain, we've both had enough of that."_

_"So has Iden…It 's selfish of me to take you from him," Adrian whimpered._

_"You're not… I don't belong to him… he doesn't even…"_

_"I don't want to be your second choice just because he doesn't want you!" Adrian growled, pushing Jason's hands away. He was angry again. That's not what Jason had meant at all._

_"I wasn't going to say that… You're not my second choice. See how I stayed here and didn't run after Ianto? I've chosen you. I want _you_."_

_"Why… because I'm an easy and convenient lay?"_

_"In what universe are you an easy lay?"_

_Adrian shrugged and his lip pouted out a bit. Jason wanted to bite that lip, but he didn't think it was the right moment for such things._

_Jason stepped back in front of his lover and pulled him in close. "Even if you didn't want to ever have sex with me again I would still need you, I would still want you near me. You're the only one who fully understands me. The only one who never judges me. Not Iden, not Ianto, not that bartender from last night… you."_

_Adrian raised an eyebrow. "Bartender from last night?"_

_Jason smiled. "He wasn't straight."_

_Adrian let out a small giggle. "I didn't think he was."_

_Jason grinned. "It's possible I turned him… I do have that allure about me."_

_Adrian rolled his eyes then moved away from Jason's embrace. Jason watched as the Frenchman walked and sat on the bed._

_"If you want to sleep with Ianto or Iden…I'm okay with it. I just don't want to see it, or hear it, or hear about it. I just want to know that I am your… I don't know… your number one choice. Because you're my number one and you always will be."_

_Jason went over to the bed and knelt before his lover. "Adrian, from this day forward I will do everything within my power to make sure you know how much I need and love you."_

_Adrian wiped a tear from his face. "That's all I've ever wanted." Jason bent forward and made a show of kissing away the Frenchman's tears._

_"And I'll deal with Ianto for calling you a boy-toy. You have never been a toy… no one ever has, you know that, right?"_

_"Yes, mon amor, I know."_

_Jason smiled. He loved the way 'mon amor' sounded on his lover's lips, and he was even happier when he heard Adrian say, "Baise-moi contre le mur jusqu'à ce que je crie!"_

AN: If I get to 60 reviews I'll tell you what Adrian said... of course you could always google it... but you know reviewing is fun... All the cool kids are doing it. :)


	17. Chapter 17

**Beta Note:** French translations are being fixed. Thank you all for your help, these mistakes are mine, not the author's. This is what you get when a person who took four years of French in school marries a Spanish speaker (gods, the tangle in my head!), then asks the lover of a lover to translate naughty phrases (which was actually quite a laugh). Seriously, folks... thank you for catching me. Please feel free to let me know when I step in it again, because I totally will. Besides, nothing like screwing up to increase the review count!

~Taamar, who sometimes betas before coffee

AN: I still love you Taamar. Thanks.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood

Rating: MA

Warning: Usual

Spoiler: None

**_Jack_**

_"Tosh… a moment please?" Jack asked his most trusted employee. Trusted… until he realized that she must have known about Ianto not going to Scotland; only Tosh's genius could make a phone call look like it was coming from somewhere else. Ianto's betrayal was bad enough, but Tosh? He never expected that, and he didn't know how to react. _

_"Sure, Jack," she smiled, waving goodbye to Gwen, who was already in the lift. "So… what can I help you with?" She followed Jack into his office and sat in the chair across from his desk. Her discomfort was evident, but Jack knew better than to assume that meant guilt. She just didn't like being called into the office if she didn't know the reason. She needed reasons and answers. Jack decided that keeping her off balance might be the best way to get her to speak candidly._

_Jack made a show of sitting down in his chair and stretching languidly. He held in a smile when she shifted uncomfortably. Jack knew she was attracted to him (everyone was). Not that he thought she'd ever DO anything about it, but he was pretty sure she was reviewing their every interaction in detail when she went home at night. He was more than happy to fuel her fantasies, especially if it made it easier to find out what she knew about Ianto. _

_"So, Ianto's phone records… well, they show that he's in Scotland." He was playing dumb, seeing if she was going to come clean of her own accord, or if she was going to keep Ianto's secret like the trusted friend Jack knew she was. It was a difficult position for her, he understood. _

_"That's where he is Jack…" She replied. Jack had mixed feelings about her lie. On one hand it was nice to know Ianto had a true friend. On the other hand… wasn't Jack the one who saved her from UNIT? Why did he deserve to be lied to? It was possible he was pouting slightly._

_"Are you sure?" He asked, giving her one last chance to spill it before he let her know he was aware of her dirty little secret. Well it wasn't dirty. But who says secret and doesn't want to put the word dirty in front of it? Jack stretched his arms over his head letting out a small moan when his back popped. _

_Tosh bit her lip. Oh, he had her now. If he waited five more minutes he was sure she would give in and just tell him. With a smile he continued. "See, because I didn't really fall for the whole 'I'm going to see my aunt' story. Plus, I know how impeccably Ianto Jones lies, so I put a tracker on his luggage. Wanna know where his luggage is at the moment?"_

_Tosh shrugged, looking down at her hands. He felt a little bad for putting her through this… but not enough not to continue, which he did._

_"He's at the home of his ex…"_

_"Wow… I mean, I had no idea…"she said, playing dumb. Not her strong suit at all. _

_"Tosh," Jack warned. "I know you set up his phone for him."_

_"He's my best friend Jack…. I'm sorry, I really didn't see any harm." _

_"Why didn't he just tell me?"_

_"He didn't want to upset you…"_

_"I'm upset, Tosh," Jack growled, standing up and beginning to pace. He had half a mind to go to Jason's right now and… well, he didn't really know what he would do, but sitting around twiddling his thumbs was about to make him lose it._

_"Jack…" Tosh began._

_Jack stopped and stared straight at her. "What?" he snapped. He was furious her. How could she keep this from him? He got no respect from any of them. Wasn't he the leader? Shouldn't they tell him everything?_

_"Jack, I don't think you should tell him you know. It would upset him, and he's been through enough. The last thing he needs is to get in a struggle between you and Jason, don't you think?" Tosh said. Jack looked at her and began to try to calm down. She wasn't required to tell him everything, and this thing between her and Ianto wasn't Torchwood business. He sighed and accepted that the only reason he was upset was because he had been left out of the loop. It had nothing to do with jealousy… nothing at all. _

_Jack nodded. "Of course… fine, as far as Ianto knows I still believe he was at his aunt's." he sighed looking down and trying not to pout. She was right. He didn't want to fight with Ianto again. What he wanted to do with Ianto had nothing at all to do with fighting._

_"Besides… It would probably upset him more to know you tracked his luggage."_

_"Fine," Jack snarled, knowing that Ianto would be beyond livid to find out that Jack had tracked him….again. _

_"So… I don't have any plans tonight would you like to help me set up the Rift Predictor program?" Tosh asked after a moment of silence. _

_Jack smiled. Yeah, getting lost in technology with Tosh seemed like the perfect escape from his current mood._

**Iden Miller**

The meeting about the Reveal Rebellion was due to start within the hour, and Ianto wanted to go see his daughter before it started. He assumed she would be in her room with Tammy, so that's where he headed. Only when he got to the room he frowned to see three bodyguards standing guard outside it.

"Minister," They all said in unison, snapping to attention. _Like robots_, Ianto thought.

"Has there been a threat to my daughter that I'm unaware of?"

"No sir. Mrs. Miller just insisted that her security be heightened."

Ianto looked the man who has spoken up and down. He didn't look friendly, and he carried enough weapons to make even Ianto feel uncomfortable. Ruby was going to have nightmares if these men followed her around all day.

"Last time I checked I was the Minister, not my wife. Now run along, go protect someone else; my daughter is fine." Ianto replied. Aria was going overboard this time. These three men needed to be elsewhere guarding something else… or playing cards. Whatever it was the security was supposed to do.

The men shifted but didn't move. "Christ, this isn't a military base you know! Just tell me what the issue is."

"She said she'd castrate us if we left, sir," One of the men blurted out. Ianto grinned. These three over-armed beef cakes were frightened of his wife. If he hadn't been so angry with her he would have been impressed.

"I can't assure you that won't happen."

The men shifted again and then finally left. Obviously being the Minister still got Ianto what he wanted in some cases.

**TW-TW-TW**

Ianto stormed into the meeting room and glared at his wife. She matched his glare. "We need to talk. Now. Over there," he spat, pointing to the other side of the room.

Aria got up from her seat in the circle of Rift Leaders and Seconds and stormed to the other side of the room. She crossed her arms over her chest, her defenses obviously up. Ianto pointed at Lindsey, the head of security for the convention. He gestured to the man to join them, feeling a bit guilty ay including him in this, but not guilty enough not to.

"Do you know who this man is, my dear wife?" Ianto asked when Lindsey stood beside them.

"Of course," Aria spat rolling her eyes, "He's the head of security."

"You're sure? Because it seems to me you think _you're_ the head of security now… I mean why else would you post three men outside our daughter's room?" Ianto growled.

Lindsey shifted nervously, clearly uncomfortable being included in their domestic. Ianto shooed him away. He was no longer useful to the point Ianto was trying to make.

"I'm head of my daughter's security… You won't tell me what's going to happen so I took it upon myself to protect her."

"Do you really think I would let any harm come to her?" Ianto growled in disbelief.

"You wouldn't have a choice!"

Ianto stared his wife down. He could see the genuine fear in her eyes. Fear for herself and her daughter. It was logical that she had heightened Ruby's security, and it was ridiculous for him to be angry with her for that. He was now angry with himself for not making her understand that she needn't worry about Ruby because she would be fine, but he wasn't sure how to do so without frightening her about her own fate. He had never felt so out of control.

Ianto came out of his thoughts in time to see Aria march over to the circle of chairs and sit next to Sarah. Jason leaned over to look at her. "Would you act your age?" he chastised.

"Of course, because I am obviously the one to blame," She spat. Ianto came and sat calmly beside her. He was about to admit that it was his fault, that he'd overreacted, when Maxi decided to be an ass.

"Is your family feud over, then?" Maxi's voice was loud enough for everyone to hear.

Ianto looked across at him, daring him to continue, wishing he would, just so Ianto could take his foul mood out on someone who actually deserved it. "Alright. This is an informal meeting really, simply because I don't see the point in it." Ianto sighed when he accepted that Maxi wasn't going to give him the pleasure. "We are here to discuss the Reveal Rebellion, which occurred in Cardiff nearly a year ago. It resulted in the relocation of 31 Rift Children. Jason, can you tell us how you found out about it?"

"I was sleeping with one of the members and was asked to join," Jason said. Ianto watched Adrian's reaction to this… there was none. Little Ianto on the other hand had rolled his eyes.

"What was the member's name?" Gina asked. Ianto was half hoping she would mouth off to him, too. He didn't usually want to hit women, but she was going to murder his wife so he would love the excuse to slap her for disrespect.

"Humberto Polo," Jason answered. Ianto bet that if Polo was there the arrogant bastard would give him a reason to take out is ever growing frustration.

"No, I don't believe it!" yelled Xander, the Peruvian leader. "He was faithful to me!"

"Well he yelled my name, so…" Jason said awkwardly.

"Jason," Ianto warned. While Jason did have a point, the actual details of the act were largely irrelevant.

Jason nodded his acquiescence and continued. "Anyway, I went to one of the meetings. I was able to identify 20 members at the first meeting and with the help of Iden, Adrian, Aria, and Ianto, we had those all relocated within the month. The last 11 members were all people I identified when I questioned the members I was in charge of disposing of. I took care of them myself."

"And my Noah was at this meeting," Gina said with silent tears running down her cheeks.

"Yes," Jason confirmed.

"As well as this whore," Gina said, angrily gesturing towards Sarah. _Bitch, _Ianto thought. He glared at Gina until she broke away from his eyes and looked down.

"Yes," Jason said simply. Little Ianto and Sarah both looked down at him.

"Oh, right, sorry..." Jason added, "Sarah is a nice young lady, not a whore."

"How come she wasn't relocated?" Liam asked. Ahh… Liam. He was a refreshing sight. He always treated everyone with respect. Always polite, always smoothing things for everyone else. Ianto wouldn't be taking his wrath out on him, that was for sure.

"She was," Little Ianto said, "She just happened to reappear here."

"It's convenient that you had the boy take out Noah and Humberto," Xander stated.

"It hasn't been convenient at all," Ianto growled. It hadn't been. It was nothing but a big pain in the ass, both in Ianto's first life and in his third. "Listen, I understand that you are upset, but when Rift Children become ambassadors they become the responsibility of the Rift Leader. The punishment in Cardiff for attempting to reveal the truth about Rift Children is relocation. End of story. There was no conspiracy here." This was something he had said countless times already, the term broken record didn't even give it justice.

"How did Noah go?" Gina asked looking directly at Little Ianto.

"I used a lethal dose of sedative. He felt nothing." Little Ianto said softly. Ianto wished he could tell her that it had been painful, like Aria's would be. Like dying from a gunshot wound to the stomach was. He wanted to say that the bullet barely clipped Noah's lung and that his lung slowly filled with blood. That his last word was muffled by the deep red substance and he is pretty sure it was 'Ruby'. No, Noah had had a merciful death. It wasn't fucking fair. Nothing that ever happened to Ianto was fair.

"Is this what you did with Mr. Polo as well?" Maxi asked, pulling Ianto from his morbid and frankly unhealthy thoughts.

Little Ianto looked up at Ianto. Ianto remembered being frightened of telling what had really happened to Polo. Ianto didn't really want to give Xander the comfort of a lie, but saved his younger self from having to make the decision anyway. "Each of the relocations was as painless as possible."

"Why do I not believe that?" challenged Scarlet, the Peruvian second in command, as she looked straight at Jason.

"Are you questioning my honesty?" Ianto snapped. He wanted her to say yes. He wanted to have a reason to throw her out of the meeting. To have security lock her up, just to show them he had that power. He wanted desperately to have power over _something_ in this whole mess.

"She is merely speaking out of turn, Minister," Xander stated, looking anxious to smooth things over. Ianto reluctantly let it go.

"Who relocated you, dear?" Mia asked Sarah gently.

"Ianto."

"Tell us how he did it," Maxi said.

"With the sedative," Sarah said.

"Did it hurt?" Gina asked.

"No. He wasn't mean about it. He questioned me beforehand, using an alien lie detector."

Ianto saw the look of horror on his younger self's face. He wasn't going to save him from this one. No, the brat deserved this one just as much as he did.

"And where did you get that, Ianto?" Jason demanded, his voice low and tight with anger.

"Torchwood," Little Ianto answered, looking straight at his guardian.

Words like dangerous, risky behavior, spoiled brat, and idiot, flew throughout the room. Ianto found it annoying really. He was sitting right there… their leader, and they were calling him names. He could have them all removed. He could have them all relocated if he so pleased… but he wouldn't. Was he losing their respect because of Little Ianto's presence, or had he never had it?

"Enough!" Ianto shouted, thinking that if the whispering went on to much longer someone would be relocated for it.

"It _is_ enough! He's too young to be in Torchwood, which is what I said from the beginning!" Bethan said, standing in her chair.

Ianto pointed a finger at her. He could tolerate disrespect from Max and Xander, just barely, but he refused to take it from the daughter he'd trained to know better. "You sit down now. If you think you are old enough to yell at me like that, little lady, then you are just as stupid as I was!"

She sat quickly like a chastened child (which, he supposed, she was). Ianto looked at Jason and raised his eyebrow. Little Ianto was Jason's charge. This was Jason's responsibility. "I didn't know, and you know that!" Jason tried to defend himself.

"Just because I know doesn't give you some free ticket to get away with things. I told you that from the beginning. You need to stay on top of things, Jason, and not depend on me to tell you!" Ianto snapped, standing up. "You all need to remember that." He looked around the room. Some of the people he loved and some he despised, but all of them knew nothing about what was yet to come, and none of them were ready for it. "I can't change things, I can't tell you what's going to happen, I can't warn you, you have to do it!" He ran his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath. He needed to calm down, he was losing his cool, and that wasn't like him at all. "This meeting is fucking over!" he growled, then stormed out of the room, knowing his wife would be on his heels.

**TW-TW-TW**

"Iden…" Aria's voice came from the other side of his office door.

"What!" Ianto snapped, wiping an angry tear off his face.

Aria opened the door and peered in. "Please don't be mad at me," she pleaded.

His face softened. "I'm not… come in here."

She walked in and closed the door to the office before walking over to him and sitting in his lap. "I love you. I didn't put those guards up to go against you, I was just worried about her."

Ianto gently ran a hand up and down her back. "I promise you I will not let anything happen to her. I promise I will protect her… or Ianto will."

Aria looked at Ianto with a raised eyebrow. "Well that wasn't cryptic at all."

Ianto smiled at her. "Cryptic is my way, dear… you know that."

Aria smiled. They spent the next two hours alone in Ianto's office just talking and holding each other. Ianto didn't want to ever let her go, but he knew that he had only a few days left with her, and that he'd be stuck in meetings for most of them. He buried his face in her hair and tried to focus on the moment rather than on what was to come. Finally a knock on the door ended their short lived moments of peace.

Adrian came in, in followed by Jason, who looked livid. Aria quickly excused herself to go check with Tammy and see how Ruby was doing. Ianto wished he could excuse himself as well; this was not going to be a pleasant conversation. He looked at his two friends. Jason stood in front of the desk his head bent down and his arms crossed over his chest and Adrian stood behind him.

"Well?" Ianto sighed after a minute of silence. Had his friends come in to challenge him to a grueling round of the Silent Game? Adrian gently pushed Jason's shoulder.

"Did you have to yell at me in front of all them? You made me look like a child." Jason grumbled.

"Don't act like one and I won't treat you like one." Ianto replied. Really, Jason had just childishly interrupted his precious time with Aria because his feelings were hurt.

"How was I acting like a child? Having a row with my wife in front of everyone… storming out of the meeting after cursing? No wait, that wasn't me, that was you! And just so you know Bethan is crying because you called her stupid." Jason spat. It was a good point, but Ianto was too angry to listen to logic at the moment.

"Alright Jason you win! What are you going to do, hmm? Gonna punish me? Tie me to a bed?" Ianto growled coming out from behind the desk to get in his guardian's face. "But you can't, can you? Because I'm in charge…" he snapped, shoving Jason, who grabbed his wrists and held him away.

"Stop." Jason said calmly.

"Fuck you!" Ianto yelled, angry now, because he knew he wasn't in charge… because if he were he wouldn't be about to lose his wife. And now his friends were angry with him. How long until they left too? Everyone eventually left, didn't they? His Father, his mother, Lisa, Tosh, Owen, Jack… Everyone…. Everyone left him.

He stopped struggling against Jason's hands and began to sob. Jason pulled him into a tight embrace. "Shh… It's gonna be okay Yanni, I'm always here for you," Jason whispered as if he could see into Ianto's mind and read the man's deepest fears.

"Aria… she'll be gone soon, by the end of this week. You have to protect little Ianto. You have to let him watch his wife die. I'm so sorry Jason…" Ianto cried, finally unable to hold it together anymore. Finally letting his feelings out.

"It's okay…" Jason said, his fingers tangled in Ianto's hair. Ianto felt his guardian gently kiss his head and increase the grip of the embrace. He pulled his head away and realized that Adrian had gone. He buried his face into Jason's chest and put his arms around his guardian's waist. He let himself lean on Jason. The man had always been a safe space, and he really needed it at the moment.

"Iden, I think we need to talk about a few things," Jason sighed after a few minutes, pulling away from the embrace.

"Like what," Ianto hiccupped. He wiped his eyes and tried not to feel rejected by the fact that Jason pulled away.

"Well… You know I love you, right?"

"Yes," Ianto replied, sniffling_. Where was Jason going with this?_

"Adrian is very important to me. I- I love him. More than…"

"Me?" Ianto interjected.

"No, it's a different sort of love; with me and him it's a partnership. We hold each other up, but with you… well, I find that I hold you up more than you hold me up."

"I'm sorry," Ianto sighed, feeling like a jerk for never knowing how to comfort Jason.

"What?" Jason smiled putting his hands on either side of Ianto's face. "Don't apologize Yan, I love holding you up. You are very important to me, and to Adrian. So important to us both."

"What are you getting at Jace?"

"We can't have sex anymore."

"Oh…" Kind of abrupt, but hadn't Ianto been saying that for years? "Okay, if you insist."

"I mean we can…. occasionally. But I don't want it to be a regular thing. I mean, Adrian says he doesn't mind as long as he doesn't have to know about it or see it. I just want to try… not to."

"Alright. I'm glad to see that you are considering Adrian's feelings… for once." Ianto replied looking down at his feet shifting them a bit. He wanted this, he really did. Jason needed Adrian and Adrian needed Jason. The way Ianto needed Jack. But he didn't have him, couldn't have him yet.

Ianto felt Jason's hand on his shoulder. "I need to know what you meant earlier when you said I would have to let Ianto watch his wife die."

Ianto looked up at Jason and sighed. No time like the present to go over what was going to be Ianto's worst déjà vu. He explained that Jason would need to find little Ianto and Ruby on the night of the 31st, that he would need to get safely to one of the panic rooms. Ianto then went on to describe how it would play out in the room, and how Little Ianto would need to stay in the room until Aria went down. Of course, by the end of the explanation Ianto was sobbing again.

"We have thirty minutes until the next meeting starts Yan," Jason said soothingly. They had ended up leaning against Ianto's desk on the floor Ianto's head on Jason's chest. "Have you eaten yet?"

Ianto shook his head.

Jason sighed. "Go eat something, then. I'll see you in the meeting."

Ianto nodded but didn't make any movements.

"Come on," Jason insisted, running a hand through Ianto's hair. Ianto reached up and grabbed Jason's hand. He gave it a small kiss on the palm, then got up to go face the rest of the day.

**TW-TW-TW**

"Get off the counter," Ianto commanded Little Ianto when he came into the kitchen.

"Jason's a bastard," Little Ianto stated flatly as Ianto grabbed his sack lunch out of the fridge. Ianto had no patience for his younger self's anger. He vaguely remembered being tied up in the man's bedroom, but given what he had done, well… he deserved it. And Jason had just held him as he cried, giving the comfort no one else could. Jason wasn't a bastard, he was a strong, brave, and caring man. A man willing to do anything for him. A man always there to hold him up when he couldn't stand any longer. He tried to brush aside his irritation at his younger self.

"You're just pissed at him. You'll get over it," Ianto said, placing the brown sack on the counter then peering under the sink. He needed to sanitize the counter now. He didn't ever remember wanting to sit on the counter… maybe he had forgotten more about his first life than he had previously thought.

"Are you the 'nice man' from Adrian's story?" Little Ianto asked. Ianto grabbed a disinfectant wipe and wiped down the counter where Little Ianto had been sitting. What the hell was he on about, anyway? He didn't know a story about a nice man… and he wasn't a nice man.

"Look, I was you a long time ago, so while I vaguely remember parts of this conversation, it's a bit foggy. Be more specific with your questions, yeah?" Ianto spat. He was irritated with his younger self for not understanding all the things Jason had and would do for him, plus he was peeved that the boy had sat on his counter. He was also crabby and tired and he just wanted to eat, go to the last meeting of the day, then spend a nice evening with his wife.

"Adrian told me his life story. He said a man would come to see him once a month. Was that you?" Little Ianto said,

"Yes," Ianto said simply, finding it odd that he could be annoyed with his younger self. He picked up his sack lunch along with a bottle of water and left the kitchen. He then looked back to see his young self looking at the stopwatch that Jack had given him. He felt a stupid jolt of jealousy; it was ridiculous, really.

**_Jason_**

_"I can't believe you just let him go! He was being punished," Jason growled at his lover. Jason had wanted to let Ianto go the moment he walked out of the room earlier in the day, but his pride had won. He had returned to his room to free Ianto, intending to apologize, only to find that Ianto had already been released by Adrian, who had very simply explained that all was well and they needed to hurry to the meeting. Jason still wasn't sure what he had meant by 'all was well' but he had gone ahead to the meeting anyway._

_Ianto had been a perfect Child during the meeting answering questions when asked, never talking out of turn and always polite. Jason could, however, sense how upset his charge was. Adrian may have told Jason all was well, but it clearly wasn't. He wondered if this was something he could fix with a gift of dark chocolate (possibly in large quantity), or if he needed to maybe buy the boy a new suit… or a car. Yeah, a car would be good. Ianto had said something about his car being ruined by carbon monoxide. _

_"Would you like me to sleep in my room tonight, then?" Adrian asked his voice barely a whisper._

_Jason looked at Adrian who was sitting on the bed taking off his watch. How could Jason not have noticed before how insecure Adrian was about Jason's feelings for him? Jason felt guilt in the pit of his stomach. "Of course not," he replied hoping his lover could see his true feelings now and vowing to himself that Adrian would never again have reason to doubt._

_"I'm sorry. I just didn't think leaving him tied up all day was…" Adrian began. Yeah Jason knew. He shouldn't have left him like that. They should have discussed it. Instead Jason had gone all macho and tied Ianto to the bed. He didn't think straight when he got upset. At least he had stopped at just tying him up though. A paddle was merely steps away, and from there —_

_"He deserves to be relocated." Jason barked, interrupting Adrian's train of thought. He wasn't about to admit out loud he was wrong. Not yet, anyway; he always ended up telling Adrian things eventually, even when he decided he wouldn't._

_"Jace… I don't think you need to be so hard on him anymore. He's growing up."_

_Jason looked at his lover. Did Adrian all of the sudden like the boy? Hadn't they just been at each other's throats the day before? Of course they had also made out at the opening party, so maybe Jason shouldn't have been that surprised. "Are you seriously defending him? Just yesterday you called him a whore!" _

_"Just forget it… listen I can go sleep in my room. I'm not in the mood for anything tonight." Adrian said hastily. Jason didn't ever remember telling Adrian that if he wasn't in the mood he needed to sleep elsewhere, but now that he thought about it he could remember many occasions where Adrian would just go sleep in his own room without explanation. Jason had figured that the Frenchman had just needed space, now he was doubting that was the actual case. Had Adrian truly believed that Jason only kept him for sex?_

_"No! You're sleeping here. In fact I want this to be our room now." Jason had been serious when he told Adrian he was going to make sure to show how much he loved him every day. This seemed like a good time to confirm his feelings today. _

_"What if you have company?" Adrian asked, as if company would be above him. As if. _

_"Then you will stay in this room and I will entertain elsewhere. You're my number one. You share a room with me." Jason explained. If that wasn't a clear declaration of his infatuation with the Frenchman then he didn't know what would be. _

_Adrian smiled gently. "Okay, mon amour. If you insist." _

_Jason got a warm feeling run through his body at his lover's words. "Oh I do insist, mon amour." _

_Jason watched as Adrian got ready for bed then got in. It was only then that he looked at the clock. "It's not even 7:30 yet." He laughed._

_"I know… but I've had an emotional day… those wear me out," Adrian yawned. Jason agreed. It seemed everyone had had an emotional day. _

_Jason walked over to the bed and tucked Adrian in tight then gently kissed his lips. "I'm not sleepy yet, but I will be back when I am. Have sweet dreams. I love you."_

_"I love you too." Adrian muttered sleepily._

_Jason quietly left the room turning off the light as he went. He saw Aria standing outside Ianto's room but he didn't stop to chat; it was hard for him to look at her now that he knew. Poor Iden, for what he knew. Poor Ianto, for what he still had to go through. _

_He went down the stairs and to the living area he poured himself a glass of scotch and sat down for some reflection time. He thought first of Adrian sleeping soundly in their bed. That sounded nice… 'Their bed'. He looked around the living room, _his_ living room. He wanted everything to be theirs not just his. This was _their_ living room inside _their_ house. Parked in their garage was their Range Rover and their… no, the Mini could continue to just belong to Adrian. _

_Ruby, trying to climb up onto the couch, pulled Jason from his thoughts. He helped her all the way up onto it, noticing Ianto (the younger version) leaning against the doorway of the living room but not acknowledging him. Ruby showed him a picture of him and Ianto from years before. Then she had insisted on 'dancing' which entailed Jason swinging her in a circle. After a few minutes of that he put her back on the floor and she toddled over to Ianto. _

_"You should probably get her to bed soon," Jason suggested, breaking the ice between Ianto and himself. Ianto just nodded, picked the little girl up, and walked away without a word. Jason sighed. He should have apologized instead of letting him walk away, but he wasn't ready for that yet. So with another sigh he went back up stairs. _

_Adrian was sleeping peacefully all tucked in tight. Jason crawled in beside him and pulled him close, breathing in the scent at the back of his neck. Shortly after, he drifted into a contented sleep. _

**AN: Reviews are great... they are full of vitamins. Also... in the last chapter Adrian said "now fuck me against the wall until I scream." **


	18. Chapter 18

AN: Taamar is the bestest lady in the world. I'm happy she is my grammar cop. (Right now she's cringing because I used the word 'bestest'.) Okay… I know that the end seems like a cliff hanger, (It totally is) but don't expect to get the answers in chapter 19 okay. Now grab your tissues and lets all cry together.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Warnings: Usual stuff.

Rating: MA

**_Jack_**

_Jack stood nervously outside his daughter's house. He was surprised she had called him; he hadn't seen her since Lucia's funeral, and he wondered if Stephen even remembered him. Perhaps it would be best if he didn't, Jack knew, but that didn't make it hurt any less. He desperately wanted to be a part of the boy's life. He knew his daughter was right though: He was too dangerous, even if he didn't want to be. That was why Lucia had left him all those years ago. _

_"Uncle Jack!" Stephen yelled from the top of the stoop bringing Jack's thoughts back to the present. Jack grinned, he was memorable after all, though perhaps the boy only knew him from the Christmas gifts that he'd had delivered three days before. Whoever said money can't buy love had clearly never met a seven year old boy. _

_"Hey buddy," Jack exclaimed, leaping up the steps and pulling his grandson into a big hug. Alice stood perched against her doorway. Jack smiled at her. She was starting to look as old as he did. It was an odd thing to think about; Jack could remember the day she was born. He could remember the time she spit up in his mouth (yuck). And he could still remember, clear and sharp as glass, how much it had hurt when Lucia had taken his precious child from him. _

_"Come on in," she said giving him a small smile that reminded Jack of her mother. Of course, most of the things she did reminded him of Lucia. The way she wanted nothing to do with him. The way she cared for her son. The way she made being a single parent seem so easy. He was proud to call her his daughter. _

_She had prepared a nice Christmas feast for them despite the fact that it was after Christmas. Stephen spent the whole meal talking about football and thanking Jack over and over again for the new ball and net Jack had gotten the boy for Christmas. After eating Stephen headed out to the back garden and Jack helped his daughter with the dishes._

_"Since when do you do dishes, dad?" Alice teased as she handed Jack a plate to rinse. He put it under the water and watched as the bubbles slipped off it. He had never realized how relaxing doing the dishes could be until he had watch Ianto do them._

_"I've recently been domesticated," Jack replied to his daughter after placing the plate in the drying rack. Ianto had forced Jack to learn how to clean the kitchen after the man had used it to make an omelet and had left it in disarray. Jack hadn't really minded cleaning the kitchen wearing only an apron with Ianto watching him nearby holding a wooden spoon. _

_"Ah… new girl?" Alice asked, shifting on her feet. Perhaps a discussion of Jack's love life wasn't the best choice, it was bound to be awkward. _

_"Man, actually." No reason to lie about it, Alice knew all there was about him anyway. "He likes things clean." Jack explained._

_"Oh…" Alice handed Jack another plate and faked a smile._

_"He's a bit of a perfectionist. Wears these amazing suits… plus he's Welsh," Jack said. He wasn't sure why he was opening up to Alice about it, but the information spilled from his lips anyway. _

_"I see. And how old is my potential step-father?" Alice said tightly. ._

_Jack wasn't sure he wanted to answer, but he did. "Early twenties, but he seems older."_

_"Oh." She paused. "He sounds like my friend David. Except David only looks like he's in his twenties. He's actually thirty two."_

_"Are you and he…?" Jack asked warily. This was somehow even more awkward than discussing his own love life. _

_"No." Alice snapped. "He's just a friend. I can actually have friends without having sex with them. He's married to a beautiful girl… Aria, I think her name is. They have a daughter, Ruby. She looks exactly like him. Actually, Dad, he's the reason I've called you."_

_"So it wasn't just to catch up?" asked Jack. He tried to keep his voice light, but it hurt that she had only invited him over because she needed something. He wished she would allow him to come over like this at least once a month, just to talk, but he knew she never would. He's missed so much of her life, and there was nothing they could do to change that, no way to bridge the distance._

_Alice rolled her eyes, oblivious to the pain her father was hiding. "I've known him for seven years. He hasn't aged…"_

_"Alice, some people just stay looking young." Jack grinned pointing to himself as if to give her an example._

_"Yeah, I know, but it's more than that. He came over a couple weeks ago and he cut his hand slicing an apple. Dad, it healed within five minutes. He tried to hide it, and I let him think that he had, but I haven't heard from him since. He hasn't called. He even missed Stephen's game. He's never missed a game before."_

_"How bad was the cut?" Jack asked seriously, switching into work mode. Was this just an overreaction, or was it something he actually had to be concerned about? _

_"Pretty bad. It stained rug that was in here," Alice said, pointing to the floor. "Do you think he's like you? Or maybe he's some sort of alien?"_

_"I'm pretty sure I'm one of a kind, but it's always possible that he's an alien. How about you give me his information and I'll check it out?" Jack replied, seeing the concern in her eyes and wanting to take it away. He didn't want her to worry about anything. That was why he sent her money every week, and why he had purchased the home she lived in for her. And why he stayed away when she asked. _

_"You won't, like, deport him back to space will you?"_

_Jack grinned and shook his head. "No. Seems he's blending in well, no need to rock the boat."_

_"Thanks." Alice nodded. "I don't want him to think that it would matter to me if he was different. He's the closest thing to a father Stephen has."_

_TW-TW-TW_

_Jack looked over his list of David James Carters again. He had narrowed them down a bit, and he now had three possibilities left. Only thing was… none of them were married, none of them had children, and one of them, the only one who shared the birthday Alice had given Jack, had died in 2005. It had also proven impossible to find a picture of the deceased David Carter. _

_The name looked familiar. Jack remembered seeing it somewhere, but he couldn't quite place it, and it was driving him mad. Maybe he would attempt to call the number Alice had given him. It was worth a shot, and the worst case scenario was he would get sent to voicemail which might mention a name. The sound of his phone distracted him from his thoughts, and he grinned when he saw it was Ianto Jones. All thoughts of David Carter were pushed from his head. _

_"Hey beautiful, missing me yet?" Jack asked when he answered the phone._

_"Nope… but on a totally unrelated subject, what are you wearing?" Ianto replied._

_"I don't think so, Ianto Jones. I'm not a cheap slut you can just call and get phone sex from whenever you so wish. I have feelings," Jack teased._

_"Of course, sir. My mistake. In that case I'm bushed, so goodnight."_

_"Don't you dare hang up," Jack warned._

_"Tell me what you're wearing."_

_"Not until you admit that you miss me."_

_"I do miss you Jack. I miss all nine inches of you," Ianto moaned suggestively._

_"Ten inches," Jack corrected._

_"I will never believe that bloody alien tape measure."_

_"Ianto, I'm undoing my trousers right now…"_

_"Good," Ianto breathed, "I'm already naked."_

_"You're a dirty boy. Okay I'm pulling out my _ten inch _cock," Jack continued, pulling his already hard erection out and sliding his hand over its length._

_"What are you going to do with it?" Ianto asked, his voice low._

_"I would love to bury it into your tight heat, Ianto Jones, but being as you are so far away I guess I'll have to improvise with my hand."_

_"Fuck, Jack, I need you so bad," Ianto sighed. His breathing was heavy, and Jack had no doubt that the man was stroking his cock on the on the other end of the phone._

_"I know Ianto. Imagine I'm there with you. Imagine that I'm deep inside you. Can you feel me?"_

_"Oh, god, yes," Ianto moaned._

_"I'm pounding into you, Yan. I need to cum inside you desperately."_

_"Oh fuck," Ianto growled. Jack knew that he had reached his climax. Jack sped up the strokes on his own cock and soon he had joined his partner._

_"You never fail to amaze me, Ianto Jones," Jack sighed as his breathing began to return to normal._

_"It's part of my charm Jack. I'm just trying to keep you on your toes."_

**Iden Miller**

Ianto watched as his wife entered their bedroom balancing a silver serving tray. Ianto leapt off the bed and took the tray from her, sliding it onto the dresser.

"What's all this, then?" he asked, peering under the serving dish to see a plate of fruit. The grapes were enough to make him frown in despair, the planet she was going to soon didn't have grapes. It had a nice substitute, but it wasn't the same. Nothing would ever be the same.

"I thought we'd have a bit of quiet time. Just the two of us. You've had a stressful day and I've had a stressful day so I thought we could relax together. I'm sure you know this already, since Ianto is watching Ruby," Aria explained. Ianto remember how he had watched his daughter. The girl had been obsessed with a picture of him and Jason, and she had insisted they go find him, but he had refused to speak to the man.

Ianto smiled and pulled his wife in for a hug. "What did you have planned for our relaxing evening, Mrs. Miller?" He asked, deciding to devote his full attention to the woman he loved.

"First, I thought we'd feed each other fruit. Following that I'm hoping you'll fuck me, then we can conclude the evening with a nice bubble bath."

"We should get started."

**TW-TW-TW**

It was three am and Ianto had been unable to sleep, so here he was in his office in the middle of the night, just staring at the wall. Without even bothering to knock, Adrian came into the room and sat in a chair opposite Ianto's desk. They hadn't planned to meet in the middle of the night, but it would certainly have appeared that they had to an outside observer, as neither seemed surprised to see the other.

"I couldn't sleep," Adrian explained, "and then I realized that your rush was in the wrong place." It was nice to Ianto how easily Adrian could find him. He always found it easy to locate Adrian as well.

"You'd be a great seeker you know," Ianto replied, looking down at his hands.

"I like kids okay… but no thanks."

Ianto smiled.

"So do you want to discuss why you are up at three am staring at the wall?" Adrian inquired tilting his head slightly. He always seemed to know when Ianto needed to talk.

"You remember in the 19th century when I told you that I couldn't wait for the 21st century?"

Adrian nodded. "Ah, yes. I believe you were bitching about the lack of technology at the time."

"The coffee was dreadful," Ianto defended himself. "Plus… technology is our friend." He didn't even want to think about being without decent coffee again.

"Anyway, what does you wanting it to be the 21st century have to do with you being awake?"

"I regret saying it. I regret every time I wanted time to rush along. It goes fast enough... too fast, really." Ianto sighed. Time was so cruel. Always moving and never stopping even when asked please.

"I don't think that's true. I know it must be hard for you. Knowing. It will be freeing when you don't know anymore."

"But then I won't have Aria."

"Yeah… but maybe you'll be able to get back to Jack?"

Ianto shook his head. "He'll never understand."

"He will if he loves you."

Ianto put his head in his hands. Jack did love him, but would love be enough in the end? It hadn't been so far, but he prayed it would be someday.

"So how's Ronan? I see he didn't make an appearance." Adrian said after a moment of silence. Adrian was certain that Ianto was making up the Rift in Denver, primarily because Ianto didn't allow anyone else to go there, and its existence was kept hush-hush. It was a small rift, and as far as Ianto could tell it had only produced one Child who couldn't leave the area, and who seemed to distrust people in general.

"I don't know. He refuses to use phones, remember? And he can't make an appearance because he is stuck there. It's not like he's ever going to have much to say to the rest of us."

"Iden, really, it's okay if you want to go away without anyone. You don't have to make up stories about mythical rifts and crazy people."

Ianto frowned at his best friend. "You're playing with fire, Frenchie."

"You're playing with fire calling me that."

"See, but I can take the heat."

Adrian grinned. "Ianto Jones, I've told you before, you could not handle me."

"When did you tell me that?"

"When we made out in the kitchen."

"Adrian, if you want to make out with me you don't need to make up stories about mythical kitchens."

Adrian snatched a pen off Ianto's desk and flung it at his friend. Ianto chuckled and caught it. "You need to work on your anger issues. Throwing things is never the answer," Ianto teased.

"I threw a compact mirror at Jason the other day. It missed him. I think I need to work on my aim."

"No, I think your aim is fine. Jace and I are just used to having things thrown at us, so our reflexes are really good."

"Ah… so I need new friends."

Ianto shook his head. "You're something else. Remember when you threw that tea cup at me and I ducked and it hit Mia?"

"Yes," Adrian said with a glare. "You shouldn't have ducked. Totally your fault."

Ianto laughed a real laugh. The sound was odd to his ears. He let out another one, and soon he was laughing too hard to stop.

**TW-TW-TW**

Ianto woke up on the 31st with a heavy heart. Before the day was done his wife would be gone. He pulled her close to him, trying to do it without waking her. Surprisingly, he was able to. He closed his eyes and focused on her special rush. He wondered if he'd ever feel it again. He moved his hand down to rest on her stomach. He wondered if she knew she was pregnant. Did she have some amazing way to tell him? Or had she decided not to tell him at all?

Aria shifted and her hand came to rest over Ianto's. "I didn't mean to wake you," he insisted.

"It's okay. I love waking up to a cuddle." Aria yawned.

"What about a kiss?" Ianto questioned.

"Not particularly… you know, morning breath and all."

Ianto let out a small laugh and kissed Aria's shoulder. "Tell me how I can make this a perfect morning for you?"

Aria turned and buried her head in the crook of Ianto's neck. "Every morning I wake up next to you is perfect."

**TW-TW-TW**

Ianto didn't want to be stuck in the meeting, but there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. It wasn't as if there was anything going on at the Aussie Rift that Liam wasn't perfectly capable of handling, and he really wanted to be with Aria. He knew she and Little Ianto were in the pool right now with Ruby. It sounded infinitely more enjoyable than this bureaucratic nonsense.

Finally he released the meeting for lunch and headed up to his office. He knew he wouldn't be seeing Aria until later; he was giving Little Ianto this time with her. The memories that his younger self was making now were some of the ones that had gotten him through during his time on the space ship of hell.

He sat down in his desk chair and looked at the clock. Not much time left. He closed his eyes and allowed a silent tear to fall. The sound of 'Crazy Frog' broke him from his silence. He grinned. He had forgotten setting that ring tone on his phone when he was little Ianto. He did it in the hopes of making his older self smile at the memory of his constant phone war with Jack, and it had worked.

"Hello?" he said into the receiver. He never answered using his name anymore. He'd had so many, and he couldn't risk using the wrong one.

"Hi," came a voice that made Ianto's heart stop. Jack? It was Jack's voice. How did Jack have his number, and why was he calling? "I'm looking for a David Carter. Is that you?"

"No. I'm afraid you have the wrong number."

"No, I don't think I do. Listen, David. I'm going to level with you here. I know you're some sort of alien. I know you're friends with my daughter Alice, and I know you aren't causing any problems. So it's fine. But I would like to meet you. Just to ask a few questions, find out where you come from, see if there's anything you need."

"I'm sorry, sir, I really think you have the wrong number. I believe you may need to dial Providence Park. It's a local mental health facility," Ianto replied. He wondered why Alice had given his number to Jack. As far as Ianto knew the woman didn't have anything to do with her father, and he hadn't spoken to her in a couple of weeks. What could have happened that made her want to give her father his number? He had cut his hand and healed last time he was at her house, but he thought he had hidden it better. Crap, she must have seen it heal. She must have asked Jack to look into it.

"Okay. I understand you don't trust Torchwood. Just save my number and if you need any help in the future give me a call. I'm peaceful if you're peaceful."

"Are you?" Ianto snapped before he could stop himself.

"Yes. As long as you're not a threat."

"What is classified as a threat, Jack?" Ianto growled. Shit, had Jack introduced himself? Had he given himself away?

"Ah… the illegal alien has done its research."

"I'm not an alien!" Ianto yelled, disconnecting the call. Fuck.

It rang again three minutes later. Ianto answered it. "Hello."

"It's very rude to hang up on someone without saying goodbye."

"Of course. That was rude of me. Goodbye," Ianto said, hanging up the phone again.

A text message came next.

_'Feisty… I like it. X Captain Jack'_

Ianto grinned at the message like a school girl who was just told that her crush fancied her. _Always the flirt, _he thought, _but he's MY flirt_. Ianto ignored the message despite the happy feeling it gave him. Another message came four minutes later.

'_I won't bother you again. Just stay out of trouble and don't let the locals know you're different. X Captain Jack.' _

**_Aria_**

_Aria gently kissed little Ianto and, with one last look at her daughter, who so resembled Iden, she hurried away. She had a feeling this was the last look she would have of her perfect little girl. _

_With a dejected sigh she couldn't quite suppress (though she tried), Aria shut her bedroom door. She rested her hand over her stomach. "I'm sorry I can't protect you," she said to the child she was carrying. She had only found out she was pregnant again the week before, and she hadn't had the heart to tell Iden. She was to certain that the child within her wouldn't be able to survive what was coming. Iden was suffering enough; she couldn't bear to add to it. _

_She went to her dresser and opened the top drawer where she had kept the letters she had written for Ruby. One for her first day of school. One for her last day of school. One for when she got her first boyfriend and one for when her heart broke. One to be read on her wedding day. One for when she had a child of her own. Aria wanted her daughter to know how much she loved her._

_Gently, Aria took the letters out, kissed the stack, and placed them in Iden's dresser. On top of them she left a letter for him. Explaining that she loved him. That she needed him to be happy. And that she would be okay, wherever she went. With another small sob she closed the drawer and headed to the bathroom to shower._

_She finally allowed herself fall apart in the shower. She didn't want it to be the end of her first life. She wanted to stay. She, like all other Rift Children, just wanted to be normal. To grow old to die and remain that way. She wanted to be able to watch Ruby age. She wanted to rock her grandchildren. She cried until the water began to turn cold, then, shivering from the chill, switched the water off and got out. _

_Pulling out the hair dryer she began to straighten out her pink and blonde locks. Then she carefully applied her make-up, making her face look flawless (and hiding the tear tracks on her cheeks). Iden always said she didn't need the make-up, but she respectfully disagreed. After she was satisfied that she was indeed 'done up' to perfection she went to her closet and pulled out the cocktail dress she had chosen for the evening. The 1960s style sheath screamed class and sophistication, and the red matched her lipstick perfectly. This was the way Aria wanted to leave her first life: looking worthy of her role as the Minister's wife. _

_Finally satisfied that she was indeed as perfect as she could get she traveled down to the entrance of the mansion and out into the front garden. Iden's smile shone brightly across the yard as Aria walked purposefully toward him. _

_"You look amazing," he said when she reached him, his hand going to her middle back and pulling her close. _

_"You don't look so bad yourself, Minister," she replied trying not to show how terrified she was. Trying not to cry and beg him to save her. She knew he couldn't, and she wasn't about to make this night harder on the man she adored. _

_Arm in arm, they wandered around the garden conversing with the various people who were there to set up for the night's festivities. From the outside looking in they looked as if they, too, believed that the night was indeed going to end in celebration. _

_Aria had suspected what was coming, and she was right. Jason and Adrian were walking toward them holding hands when she heard the first gunshot. Aria saw it hit Jason's arm and heard the man curse loudly in some language she didn't know._

_Iden pulled her to the ground and settled with his weight on top of her. "Jason! GO!" Iden yelled._

_"Ruby…" Aria cried looking at the grass below her. _

_"She's going to be fine, " Iden assured her, picking her up off the ground and rushing toward the garage for cover from the continued shots. _

_Aria started to shake as Iden pressed her up against the garage door sheltering her with his body. She wasn't ready for whatever was about to happen. She noticed that he was shaking too. "They're looking for Ianto. They won't find him though. He and Ruby are safe, I promise you that."_

_"Why him? What do they want with him?" Aria asked, her voice curiously calm when she felt anything but calm inside. _

_"They think that if they kill him it will screw up my timeline and that they will be able to get Noah and Polo back," Iden explained in a hushed voice._

_"I'm going to die tonight," Aria stated._

_Iden looked down at her. His face was full of despair. "Yes," he replied._

_Aria closed her eyes trying to get her head around what was about to happen; suspecting and knowing were very different. With a sigh she opened them and looked deep into her husband's eyes. "I've left letters for Ruby in your sock drawer. They are each labeled for certain events in her life. Make sure she knows how much I love her."_

_Iden nodded and increased his grip around Aria's waist. They held each other tightly. Aria didn't want the moment to end. How could she ever love anyone as much as she loved Iden Miller? Who else could ever compare?_

_Another round of gunshots pulled them from their embrace. "We need to get into the kitchen," Iden explained. Aria nodded. They snuck around to the front of the mansion. The front door was unguarded, and they got in easily. Once in the kitchen they found themselves surrounded. Aria held tight to her husband, too frightened to even focus on what was going on around her. Reinforcements arrived, and they quickly had Maxi, Ryan, Scarlet, and Xander on their knees. _

_Aria looked up at Iden. She was so confused. Wasn't she supposed to have died? But the threat seemed over. "I'm so sorry, my love," Iden whispered into her hair, then kissed her temple. Aria heard another shot and pain went through her body. Iden was sobbing as he eased her to the floor._

_"No!" she heard Ianto's voice scream in the distance._

_"Ruby," Aria tried to say, but her last word was muffled by her own blood. Her world turned to blinding white._

**_TW-TW-TW_**

_Slowly the white began fade to a softer glow, until finally Aria registered that she was in some sort of room. Her feet felt odd beneath her as she slowly spun in a circle, inspecting her new location. There was a shelf on one wall with various white robes folded on it. On the wall opposite of it was a door. On another wall was a clock with both time and date displaying the year the final wall was a large mirror, and Aria would lay odds it was a two-way mirror. _

_Aria stepped off what seemed to be some sort of platform and grabbed a robe off the shelf putting it around her shoulders and tying it in front of her. Only then did the door opposite the shelf slide open, and Aria turned to meet the gaze of Captain Jack Harkness. _


	19. Chapter 19

AN: Taamar is the best. I mean seriously. She is a goddess. Okay. I got nothing else. Enjoy the chapter. Oh and thanks to everyone who commented. You guys are super.

Disclaimer: I don't own Jack… or Ianto…. But Adrian and Jason are mine…. (I share them Taamar.)

Rating: MA

Warnings: Usual.

**_Jack_**

_Jack was chasing a Weevil. It was New Year's Eve and he was chasing a freaking Weevil. Life was such a bitch sometimes, and if anyone was aware of that fact it was Jack Harkness. Jack stopped running when he had the alien pinned at the end of an alleyway. _

_"Listen, I'm tired, you're tired. Why don't we just call this little game of cat and mouse a tie and you come along peacefully?" Jack said to the beast. It growled back at him, showing its sharp white teeth. "You must spend a fortune to keep those that white. I hear blood stains teeth."_

_The weevil launched at him and sunk its teeth into his neck. The last thing Jack thought before darkness overtook him was that maybe he should stop teasing the Weevils and just spray them._

_Jack was dragged back into life with the sound of fireworks going off in the distance. He hated holidays. _

**Iden Miller**

Ianto and Little Ianto sat side by side on the couch Jason was cleaning the blood off little Ianto's hands as Adrian did the same for Ianto. Ianto felt empty. He kept trying to speak, but words just wouldn't form. The only comfort he had was he wouldn't have to endure this moment again. Watching his wife die once had been bad enough, but the second time was worse. Because the second time he could have prevented it but didn't.

At least she was going somewhere nice for her second life, yeah? And she'd see him again, even if he might not see her. And she'd find love again. What was his name? Ryker? Yeah, that was it. And there was IJ. Aria wasn't really gone, and she wasn't alone, she was just… elsewhere. Elsewhen. Very far away. God, he was going to miss her.

"Where is Gina?" Ianto asked, breaking the silence and grasping his best friend's hand. He had just remembered that he would need to relocate her tonight.

"She's in the basement with the others," Adrian whispered. "We can deal with them tomorrow. You need to go to bed now."

"No. I want to kill her now!" Ianto snarled, standing up. He walked out of the room, vaguely aware of fireworks going off in the distance. It was the year 2008. Again. The Children of the Rift had welcomed it in with a blood bath. All the men and women working for Maxi and Xander had been taken out; the only murderers left were Maxi, Ryan, Xander, Scarlet, and Gina. Ianto intended to execute them all. They shouldn't be allowed to see the morning. He hoped they all landed on the planet with two suns.

Ianto could feel his best friend following him down into the basement. "You don't want to see this, Adrian." He warned as he started down the stairs. The sound of Adrian's footsteps continued to follow him down the hall.

"Minister." Came the voices of five guards. Ianto hated the guards. God, what was the point of them? They hadn't saved his wife. Over fifty people had been relocated, and not a one of them was going to offer condolences. Freaking robots was all they were. Useless freaking robots.

"I want all five of them in that room." Ianto demanded, pointing to the relocation room. He stood tall and watched each of the murders as they were escorted to the room. He waited until the door was shut firmly behind them before he fell to his knees and began to sob. He hardly registered his gun being taken from his waist band or Adrian walking into the relocation room. Even the five shots that followed weren't enough to startle him out of his anguish.

Adrian came out of the relocation room and helped Ianto to his feet. "You go sleep with Jason and I'll worry with the rest." Adrian insisted.

Ianto shifted instantly from grief to fury. "I was supposed to do it! It needed to be me! I let her die to preserve the timeline, and you went and broke it! " Ianto raged, shoving his friend up against the wall. If the timeline hadn't been so important he could have saved her. He could have sent her away. He could clone her like he did (would) with Tosh and Owen. If he hadn't introduced her to his younger self he'd have been free to save her. But the timeline locked him in to this; nothing he could do. Nothing he could ever do.

"Ianto Jones! Look around, he's not even here! Did you see yourself kill them?" Adrian challenged, gripping his friend by the upper arms and looking into his eyes.

Ianto slowly shook his head.

Adrian took a deep breath and continued, "You've been assuming all these years, but you were wrong. You need to calm down, the timeline is fine."

Ianto nodded. Yeah… that made sense. Then the fact that his gentle friend who had never hurt a fly had just shot five people hit him. "Oh, Adrian, I'm so sorry."

"No Yan, there's nothing to apologize for. Now go up to Jason's room and get some sleep." Adrian replied in a comforting tone. Ianto was too tired and too upset to argue.

Ianto traveled up the stairs on autopilot until he was at Jason's door. He went in and took off all his clothes but his boxers. He got into Jason's bed, only then realizing that little Ianto was on the other side. It was an odd thing to forget.

"Tell the grape story again," Ianto whispered, laying his head on Jason's shoulder. Proving that no matter how old you get, sometimes you just want your guardian.

TW-TW-TW

Dejection hung heavy over the dining room. Ianto sat in front of a laptop at the end of the table. Jason sat next to him, then Adrian. Little Ianto sat across from them. Adrian had dutifully collected a list of the relocated from every Rift. He had dealt with organizing the cleanup. Ianto had been glad to wake up and find that the mansion showed no signs of the coup that had happened the night before. Adrian must have stayed up all night. He'd always thought that he took care of the Frenchman, that Adrian was fragile, even when Jason claimed otherwise, but he realized now that he had seriously underestimated his friend; Adrian had been taking care of him all along, and he'd never realized it.

Ianto had tried to take care of Aria, too. And what happened? He got her killed. She had given him everything, all her love, and a beautiful daughter, and he couldn't even give her his whole heart. She had been the one taking care of him, too, and he'd never even noticed.

"Adrian, do you have the list of the relocated from Cardiff?" Ianto asked, breaking the oppressive silence of the room.

Adrian shifted through a few papers in front of him then handed Ianto a handwritten list of names. It was times like these that Ianto wished he wasn't good with names, but unfortunately he recognized every name on the list, and he could clearly see each of the victims faces.

"How many?" Little Ianto asked, his voice breaking a bit.

"Too many," said a small voice at from the entry of the dining room. Ianto looked up to see a red faced Bethan walk into the room still shaking with distress, tears evident on her cheeks. Ianto had spoken to her on the phone earlier. He wondered if she had stopped crying since then. Ianto walked straight to the ancient girl and picked her up, gathering her in his arms and holding her close. She clung to him and sobbed into his shoulder. "Shh…" Ianto soothed, rocking her back and forth. He wished he could have saved her from the pain. He wished he could have saved everyone from the pain.

"Seventeen from Cardiff. Thirteen Americans. Twenty-two Peruvians. Two from London," Ianto heard Jason whisper little Ianto.

Ianto walked to stand at the front of the table still holding Bethan; he didn't want to put her down just yet. He wanted to hold his daughter and feel her special rush. He needed to know she was still with him. "We have three rifts without leadership now." He explained. He didn't want to deal with all of it but he had to. He was the leader of the Rifts, the minister. He would stand tall for the others; he would show strength because giving up was never an option. Life had to go on, even without Aria.

"Mia?" Little Ianto questioned.

Jason shook his head and rubbed a frustrated hand over his eyes. "Gina… relocated her."

There was a moment of silence. Ianto already missed Mia. If she were here she'd have already served mimosas to take the edge off. She would have made them all laugh at least a little. But she wasn't here. Her most trusted friend had shot her in her sleep. Ianto looked up at Adrian. He knew that the man would never do that to him. He trusted Adrian above all others.

Ianto cleared his throat. "I trust the four of you, more than you know.

"Tink, I need you in Salem. Take Joy with you. I need you to do interviews with all the Children there. Pick out who would make them a good leader.

"Adrian, I need you to do the same thing in Peru."

"No, I want him to stay here," Jason interrupted. Ianto knew what the man was feeling, and he hated to separate them when they had finally settled things between them, but Peru needed leadership and Adrian had a knack for picking quality leaders.

Ianto sighed. "Jason, I promise he'll be okay, and he won't be gone long." Three months wasn't long, was it? They'd hate every second, but they knew their duty to the Children.

He turned to his younger self. "Ianto, I need you to help Jason here while Adrian is away. I will be heading to Las Vegas. There's so much to do there." Ianto sighed and gently put Bethan on the ground.

"Can I send someone with Adrian?" Jason asked, still focused on his lover. Ianto nodded wondering who Jason would send. One of the pointless guards, perhaps?

"What about Ruby?" Little Ianto asked. Ianto thought about his young daughter two floors above in her room with Tammy. She was the real victim in all this. Motherless. His eyes drifted to Bethan momentarily. Both of his daughters were motherless.

"She's coming with me. I'm sorry Ianto, I can't leave her here, I don't know how often I'll be able to come back." Ianto explained to… well, himself.

"Of course. It's what I would do," Little Ianto said, smiling slightly at his own joke.

"Okay, so those are the long term plans, let's discuss the short term." Ianto cleared his throat. "Jason, I need you to figure out if Sean is innocent or not." Ianto knew he was innocent, but that wasn't the point. He had to let Jason figure it out in order for little Ianto to figure it out and for him to then in turn know that Sean was innocent. Timey Whimy stuff again.

"Adrian, you did a great job dealing with all the bodies. Thank you. Now head to bed."

Ianto was happy to see the Frenchman nod and shuffle out without argument, though perhaps that was indicative of his exhaustion. He had been up all night, after all. Ianto waited until he was gone before speaking again.

"We need cover stories for all those who have been relocated. Anybody have any ideas about that?"

Everyone looked towards Little Ianto, who was drawing circles on the table with his finger.

"What?" Little Ianto said when he looked up to find all eyes on him.

"We're pretty good with cover stories, but I know a person who is a bit better than us," Ianto said casually.

"Tosh?"

**TW-TW-TW**

"So how old are you now?" Tosh asked Ianto when they had finished setting up the last cover story. 54 cover stories. He was inordinately glad to have her help; he couldn't have done it alone.

Ianto looked at his old friend and sighed. "Old," he replied.

"Over one hundred?"

"Yes."

"Two hundred?"

"You know, it's rude to ask someone their age Tosh," Ianto pretended to chasten her.

Tosh made a small pouty face.

"Alright, I'm two hundred and two."

"Wow… really?" Tosh exclaimed with her mouth wide open in shock.

"Yes." Ianto sighed nodding his head.

"Well, you look amazing for your age."

"That is a perk."

"Yeah," Tosh sighed, looking around the dining room. "It's got to be hard though. People you love all leaving and dying."

Ianto nodded. "Yeah. Actually nowadays I try to keep my relationships limited to Rift Children alone. Of course if the Child is in their first life like Aria was its assumed that they, too, will leave. And obviously Children occasionally get relocated in later lives, though not as often."

"It's sad though… You and Jack. You're so perfect together…"

"Tosh… If I tell you something about Jack will you keep it between us? I mean you and me, not little me."

"I'm great at keeping secrets. You know that."

"Jack immortal. He can't die."

"So… He's a Rift Child as well?"

"Nope. He's a fixed point. But he isn't aware of that yet, he just knows he can't die. So keep it to yourself, yeah?"

"Hmm… well that's perfect, then. You and Jack could be together after all."

"Is it nice in your fantasy world?"

"What? Why couldn't you? See, if you'd just let me talk to him… I could make him understand."

"No Tosh. I've tried. Twice. And he threatened the Children both times. Do you understand what's at risk for us?"

"So, what, you get to live forever among friends but Jack has to continue to go it alone? That's not fair at all."

"Well, he is the stubborn one who refuses to accept that Rift Children aren't a threat to the universe."

"How long have you ever given him to process it? Hmm? It took me nearly two weeks to finally be okay with it."

"Yes… well you didn't over react. He wants to call in UNIT. UNIT, Tosh…do you know what would happen?"

"Yeah, I know exactly what UNIT is capable of. Fine. I see your point."

The rest of Day One Without Aria (as Ianto thought of it in his mind) went by in a blur. All the cover stories were set up thanks to Tosh. It was confirmed that Sean wasn't guilty, and Ianto began packing for Vegas. He had already booked a flight for Ruby, Sarah, Sean, Bethan, Joy and himself to New York. Now it was nearly midnight and he needed to make a call to his younger self to ask if Sarah could come. He prepared himself to hear Jack's voice again.

"Ianto's phone," Jack answered brightly. Iden almost lost it. For some reason now that Aria was gone he longed for the comfort that only Jack could provide.

"Is Mr. Jones there?"

"Yep, he's here. He just woke up." Jack explained.

"Can he come to the phone? This is Iden Miller, his landlord."

"Oh, I'm Jack."

"Ahh… you must be the boyfriend that broke my door."

"Yeah… oh, he's glaring at me." Jack confessed. Ianto could clearly see Jack's grinning face in his mind.

"You'd best give him the phone, then. We Welshmen can have quite a temper. It was nice talking to you though, Jack."

"Yes, nice talking to you, too, Iden," Jack responded, then handed the phone to little Ianto.

"Good morning, Iden." Little Ianto yawned into the phone.

"Hey. Sorry to wake you," Ianto greeted.

"That's okay."

"I just wanted to let you know that I will be taking Sean with me to Vegas. It's up to you, of course, but Sarah is invited to come along," Ianto explained. He knew he sounded sad and depressed, and he knew little Ianto would be able to pick up on it.

"I'm sorry, Iden. I know that was probably difficult," Little Ianto whispered.

"I knew he was going to answer, I just… I haven't heard his voice in so long…" Ianto choked out. It was a lie, of course, but what little Ianto didn't know couldn't hurt him, yet. Both versions of Ianto were silent for a moment.

"Anyway," Ianto continued, breaking the silence. "It's your choice whether Sarah goes or not. Just let me know by tomorrow night so I can book the tickets."

"You've already booked them, haven't you?" Little Ianto quipped.

"Yes, but you don't know how many I booked." Ianto grinned. His younger self was getting brighter every day.

**_Jack_**

_Jack listened from the bathroom to the end of Ianto's conversation with his landlord. He wondered what had been difficult for Iden, and what sort of relationship Ianto had with the man that he would know about it. Jack looked at himself in the mirror and then, as things do when least expected, something clicked into place._

_David Carter's name… He had seen it when doing a security check on Ianto. David Carter had sold Iden Miller the flat building that Ianto lived in. Jack peeked out of the bathroom in time to see Ianto hang up his phone. Did Ianto know David Carter? _

_"Are you going to get back in bed, or are you just going to stare at me for the rest of the night?" Ianto asked, breaking Jack's concentration. _

_"I like staring at you, Ianto, but I'd prefer to touch." Jack grinned. He pounced on to the bed and pinned the Welshman below him. _

_"Well, touch away," Ianto said suggestively. Once again, thoughts of David Carter were pushed from Jack's mind. _

_"So… is it normal for your landlord to call you in the middle of the night?" Jack asked casually some time later as the two men basked in the afterglow._

_Ianto shrugged and made a noncommittal grunt._

_"He sounds like you. I've found that you people sound the same on the phone."_

_"You people?" Ianto asked pointedly, sitting up onto his elbows and raising his eyebrows._

_"Yeah… the Welsh."_

_"I sound nothing like Gwen."_

_"I meant men. Welshmen."_

_"I sound nothing like Andy Davidson."_

_"You do, a bit."_

_Ianto open his mouth and then closed it. "Are you telling me that you can't tell the difference between my voice and everyone else's?"_

_"Oh don't be so dramatic Ianto. Of course I can tell your voice from someone else's."_

_"Whatever… next time you call for phone sex I'm putting Andy Davidson on the line." Ianto huffed, rolling his eyes and laying back down on the bed. He seemed a bit upset, but Jack had no idea why. _

_He poked Ianto in the ribs, trying to lighten the mood. "I'll try not to call when you're with Andy. Why would you be with Andy? Can I watch?"_

_"Jack!"_

_So much for that. He laid his hand soothingly on Ianto's back. "Your voice is beautiful. I'd rather hear it in person than over the phone."_

_"Would you be able to tell Owen's voice apart from a random Englishman?" _

_"Probably not."_

_"You're an odd duck, Jack." Ianto teased. Jack smiled; if Ianto was joking he wasn't that mad. Jack bent forward and kissed Ianto's shoulder blade. _

_"I know. Listen, you get some more sleep. I'm gonna go do some paperwork."_

_"No you're not." Ianto sighed._

_"I'm gonna go sit in my office chair and pretend to do paperwork."_

_"At least now you're being honest." Ianto yawned. _

_Jack kissed the Welshman one more time then traveled up to his office. He was going to do a little digging on Iden Miller. _


	20. Chapter 20

AN: We got this done a day before schedule. It was a pretty fun chapter to write. Taamar makes everything fun though.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Warnings: usual

Rating: MA

Spoilers: Captain Jack Harkness, End of Days.

**_Jack_**

_It had been child's play for Jack to get Ianto's phone and take Iden Miller's number off it. He had done it while Ianto was in the shower. (Of course, after he had stolen the number he had joined Ianto in the shower. He wasn't going to miss the opportunity.) _

_Now he had the number he just wasn't sure what to do with it. What did it matter if he had Iden Miller's number? What was he going to do, call him up and ask him if he had brought any real estate from an alien recently? No, that wouldn't be a good plan at all. So instead he had given the team the day off simply to spend it tracking down all he could about Mr. Miller to see if there was more than a real estate connection between him and David Carter. _

_The first thing he found was the birth certificate of Ruby Miller. Ahh… it was the baby's birthday. Strange… hadn't Alice said that David Carter's daughter was named Ruby? It must be the new 'in' name. _

_The next thing he found was a death certificate for Aria Miller. She had died on the New Year's Eve. She had been mugged while going out to get more wine and was found dead from a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Tragic and senseless. Jack looked at the obituary picture and smiled sadly, wondering if this was what Ianto had been referring to when he told Iden that something must have been really hard on him. No, it couldn't have been that. Ianto would have responded differently to being told the woman had died. In fact, now that Jack thought about it, he was sure that Ianto and Aria had been friends. But why hadn't Ianto mentioned that his friend had died, then? Aria's name caught his eye again. Wasn't Aria the name of David Carter's wife?_

_Then things fell into place. David Carter was Iden Miller._

**Iden Miller**

"Listen princess, I know it's your birthday tomorrow, and it sucks that we are going to be traveling in a plane for it… but if I promise to buy you a pony will you not have a diva fit about it?" Ianto asked, looking down at his twelve month old daughter, who was sitting on the floor playing with wooden blocks while he packed up her clothing. Okay, she probably only barely understood what he was saying, and certainly wasn't ready for a pony, but he'd do anything for her, and it was the thought that counted, right?

Ruby looked up at him with her face filled with confusion, then put a block in her mouth and looked back down at the floor. Apparently she had no plans of throwing a 'Diva Fit' after all. Of course, she wasn't stuck on the plane yet. God, traveling with a baby was not something Ianto Jones felt brave enough to do. Unfortunately he didn't have much choice in the matter.

"Okay. Well, seeing as you don't seem to care, I'm keeping the pony card to play later. Perhaps for when you want to date and I tell you no." He grinned down at his daughter. "I really do think you would make a good nun." She was still not paying much attention to him; instead she got to her feet and wobbled adorably over to her bookshelf that was full of toys. She pulled down a ball.

"Ba…" she squealed, throwing it in the air.

"See, ignoring daddy is not going to make him change his mind," Ianto pretended to chasten her.

She looked back at him and let out a giggle. He smiled at her and she pulled down a soft book and sat down on the ground. She opened the book and looked down at it.

"Ponies are better than boys, Ruby. I promise you that," Ianto continued.

"Da na ja da ya," Ruby said, pretending to read the book. Ianto abandoned his task and sat down beside her pulling her into his lap and looking down at the book.

"Nose." He read for her. "Do you know where your nose is?" he asked. She looked up at him with wide eyes. He put his finger to her nose and then to his own. "Nose." He repeated. She grabbed his nose and he played like his was going to bite her hand.

She let out a high pitched giggle then tried it again.

"I see you two are having fun without me," Jason said from the doorway.

"Ja!" Ruby said abandoning her father's lap and toddling over to her uncle. "Dan!" she demanded, raising her arms to be picked up. Jason spun her around once and she squealed happily.

Ianto got off the floor. "Did Adrian get off okay?"

"That's a bit of a personal question," Jason grinned.

"Jason," Ianto warned.

"Yes, he got on the plane okay," Jason sighed, rolling his eyes. "I'm still not happy about it though."

"Nor am I," Ianto sighed.

**TW—TW—TW **

Ianto handed Ruby off to Little Ianto as soon as they got to the airport. "I know you're going to miss her, Ianto, but it really won't be that long till you see her again," Ianto explained.

Little Ianto nodded and gently kissed Ruby's head. Iden's phone started playing 'Crazy Frog' at that moment.

"I have to take this, will you keep an eye on her for a minute?" Ianto asked his younger self, already turning to take the call more privately. He knew that Little Ianto would.

He answered the call as soon as he was alone in the gents. "Hello?"

"Hello Iden… or should we just go ahead and admit who you really are?" Said Jack's voice, full of challenge. Ianto felt his heart stop. Had Jack figured it out? Did he know?

"Who would that be, Jack?" Ianto asked, trying to keep his voice level.

"You're David Carter."

Ianto let out a breath he had been holding. "And what would make you think that?"

"Because I called you using the number I have for David Carter. Not the number I have for Iden Miller."

Ianto looked at himself in the mirror then ran a hand over his face. _Fuck._ Jack was a smart man when he wanted to be. Iden did have several numbers all going to his one phone. Still, did it matter than he had made the connection? He knew that Jack wouldn't connect Iden to Ianto, at least for a while.

"Okay… so you're a very smart man, then. It really doesn't matter though does it? You said if I was peaceful you would be peaceful, so what does it matter if I'm two people?"

"It doesn't. I just wanted you to know that I knew. Also… I'm sorry to hear about the passing of your wife. Little Ruby shouldn't have to face growing up without a mother, it's a shame that she now has to."

"I agree," Ianto sighed.

"Well, Iden you have my number if you need anything. I really wish you would agree to get together with me, but I see that you are heading to America today so I guess we will have to take a rain check on that." Ianto looked back into the mirror and rolled his eyes. Jack was trying to intimidate him with his knowledge about Iden Miller. "Let's see… a Bethan Parker and her mother Lynn Parker, Miss Sarah Higgins, and a Sean Williams, along with little Ruby and yourself. That's a lot of tickets for you to have paid for. And that's not including the two tickets you bought for two of your friends who seem to be heading to South America. You must make a lot of money in real estate?"

"It's a fair living. It's all about timing. Of course you know all about time."

Ianto heard Jack clear his throat on the other end of the line. "Alright, Iden. I can see that you know things about me. Now, when you come back to Cardiff let's get together so I can learn some things about you, such as why you changed your name from David Carter to Iden Miller. What kind of name is Iden anyway?"

"It means 'waiting'. Do you know anything about waiting, Jack? You don't strike me as a very patient man."

"I know how to wait, I just don't like to. What are you waiting for, Iden? Are your people going to come rescue you?"

"Something like that," Ianto sighed, looking at himself in the mirror and biting his lip. _Waiting for you._ Ianto thought. "It's been fun chatting with you, Jack, but as you know, I have a plane to catch."

"Of course, have a nice vacation. Give me a call when you get back into town." Jack replied.

"I will try and have a nice time, but I will not be calling you, Jack." Ianto sighed.

"Ahh… still playing hard to get. I've always loved a challenge."

Ianto smiled at the mirror and shook his head. "That's nice. Goodbye Jack." Ianto shut his phone. It was dangerous for him to talk to Jack and he knew it, but he couldn't help the small smile that was on his face after hearing his lover's voice.

"Minister, sir, it's time to catch the plane," Sean said, coming into the loo.

"Of course, I'm coming." Ianto sighed. Time to go back to real life.

**TW—TW—TW **

It was the twenty-first of January. Ianto knew that in Cardiff Jack and Tosh would be heading back in time. He knew that at some point tomorrow Little Ianto would call him. He knew the call would be painful… but he couldn't focus on that now. It was the day of Ruby's birthday party, nearly three weeks after her _actual _birthday due to travel and work, and Ianto had gone all out with it. It's what Aria would have wanted; she loved parties. Ianto sighed as he looked over the skyline of the Vegas strip. It seemed oddly peaceful as the sun began to rise. The City of Sin.

It had proven to be a difficult city thus far. The few Children left in Max's command structure didn't trust Ianto at all, and the feeling was mutual. So, being as there was no way in hell he was about to allow people who didn't trust him run one of his Rifts, they had all been demoted. Well, mostly all. Those directly involved in the whore house or the drug dealings had been relocated. Pity for them. Ianto now had the task of starting from scratch. He needed a new Leader and a second. He needed someone to head the Torchwood Plan, and he needed new seekers.

It had all proven too much for him to handle on top of wanting to be Ruby's only caregiver, so he had finally given in and called Tammy, begging her to come to Vegas. He didn't trust anyone else with his daughter, especially not the Children of Vegas.

"Sir?" Tammy questioned. Ianto turned to see his daughter's nanny wringing her hands and looking at him with apprehension clear on her face.

"Yes?" Ianto said. He looked back out the floor to ceiling window in his (Max's) high rise condo.

"I just wanted to once again say that…"

"We're having the party, Tammy!" Ianto snapped. The woman had been trying to talk Ianto out of the party since she had arrived in Vegas the week before. It was getting on Ianto's last nerve.

"You're not looking at what's important here, sir! Ruby's lost her mother… she's been uprooted to a new place… she's not going to enjoy being surrounded by strangers who are only there because they are scared of the Ministers wrath!"

"You're overstepping your boundaries. She's my daughter; I know what is best for her!" Ianto growled, getting into the woman's face. Tammy wasn't a bit intimidated. She stood up onto her tip toes to get closer to Ianto's face.

"I loved Mrs. Miller. She was a wonderful mother. But having this party isn't what she would have wanted, as much as you keep telling yourself it is."

Ianto sighed, taking a step back and running his hand through his hair. "We are having the party." He replied calmly.

Tammy opened her mouth to speak again but a cry from Ruby's room stopped her. With a sigh she turned and left to take care of Ianto's daughter while he walked behind her.

"Good morning, little warrior," Tammy grinned, picking Ruby up out of her crib and laying her onto the changing table.

"_Little warrior_?" Ianto asked. Ruby was a princess.

"Yes. She's a warrior. She isn't a damsel, she can save herself from a tower. So she's a warrior, just like her mama was." Tammy smiled down at Ruby without making eye contact with Ianto.

"I see," Ianto nodded. He could feel tears building behind his eyes. "I've got to go see about the party plans now. You will be in there at eleven. Have her in her nice dress; the photographer would like to get a few shots before the party starts."

"Of course, Minister," Tammy sighed, throwing Ruby's soiled nappy in the trash and grabbing a fresh one.

**TW—TW—TW **

The party was pretty. That was something, at least. The cake was bigger than either of Ianto's wedding cakes had been, and Ruby looked adorable in her fluffy pink dress. Only thing was, she didn't look happy. Not one bit.

Ianto walked over to where Tammy was holding his daughter and put out his arms to her. She rushed to him eagerly, then gripped his suit as if she was frightened. Damn Tammy for being right.

"Tammy, if you would, please find Sarah and meet me up in the Condo. Can you also bring the top layer of that monstrous cake? We'll be celebrating the rest of the party up there."

Tammy smiled. "Okay Minister. Not a problem."

Ianto left the party, and Ruby visibly relaxed as soon as they were alone in the elevator. "I'm sorry, my little warrior. I was so caught up in trying that I tried too hard. He whispered to her."

Ruby laid her head on his shoulder. "Da-da," she cooed, patting him gently.

The small party in the condo went a lot better. Ruby sat in her high chair and made a right mess of her cake. Ianto bent down to give her little frosting covered face a kiss and she put frosting in his hair. Tammy snapped a picture. The professional photos were beautiful, but this one would forever be Ianto's favorite picture of his daughter from the day of her party.

Ianto was glad that Tammy hadn't said _I told you so_. Bless her.

**_Jack_**

_Jack slammed the phone in his office down. The Prime Minister could be such a prat. He looked through his office door to see that Ianto had woken up. This day had been hard on his young employee. Jack had watched the CCTV videos he had seen Owen bully the Welshman. He had also seen how hard Ianto had fought to keep the Rift from being opened. Even shooting Owen hadn't been enough to stop him, but Jack respected Ianto for trying. _

_Jack got up and went to the door to his office. He opened it and leaned against the door. "Tosh, you're exhausted. I want you to go home and get at least four hours of sleep before you come back. Tomorrow is going to be a hell of a day, I imagine."He paused a moment to make sure she had heard him. Then he continued, "Ianto I want to see you in my office."_

_With a sigh Tosh shut out her computer and began to pack up her little bag. Ianto squeezed past Jack and sat down in the chair across from Jack's desk. Jack wait until Tosh was gone to lean on his desk in front of Ianto. "You want to tell my why you fell asleep in your car?" From what was happening on the news Jack new that soon he and his employees were going to be too busy to even think._

_"I didn't think it would be a good idea for me to drive, sir," Ianto replied._

_Jack was so tired of Ianto calling him sir, but he was also tired of trying to stop the Welshman from saying it. "Why didn't you just come back into the Hub? You could have slept in my bunker."_

_Ianto shifted in his seat. Jack couldn't tell if the boy was uncomfortable or just didn't feel well. "I don't know sir, the others were still here. I didn't want…"_

_"Okay, that's fine… fair enough." Jack sighed. He didn't want to get into a fight with Ianto at the moment. Ianto was most likely just feeling insecure because of the things that Owen had said to him. "So, have you eaten yet?"_

_"No sir," Ianto replied._

_"Well… go do that. Then come back here and we can get a bit of sleep." _

_Ianto nodded and got up. Jack watched as he retreated toward the small kitchenette. When Ianto came back twenty minutes later his demeanor still hadn't improved, so Jack decided that he needed to show his Welshman he was more than just a part-time shag. _

_"Come here," Jack sighed holding his arms out. Ianto closed the distance between them and laid his head on Jack shoulder. "You are so important to me. Do you understand?"_

_"Yes Jack."_

_"You did a great job today."_

_"I failed. He still opened h… it," Ianto whimper. Had he been about to call the Rift her? Or maybe him? Odd, of course, but it could have just been a slip up. It was clear the Welshman was practically dead on his feet._

_"I know… it's okay," Jack soothed._

_"It's not… it's not better. I thought it was but it's not…" Ianto continued, his voice a bit panicky. _

_Jack used one finger to raise Ianto's chin so that they were looking in each other's eyes. "I'm going to fix this. It's going to be okay." Jack wasn't really sure how to fix it, or really if he actually could, but Ianto needed his reassurance right now, not his doubts._

_"Okay. I trust you," Ianto replied. The words ripped a ragged hole through Jack. Ianto trusted him, but he wasn't trusting Ianto with what he knew. With who he was. He wasn't even trusting the younger man with his heart. Maybe he should tell Ianto about his landlord being an alien? No, he couldn't. It wasn't his secret to tell, and he didn't want to give the Welshman more to worry about, anyway._

_Finally Jack pressed his lips to Ianto's, wondering momentarily if Ianto could tell that Jack had kissed someone else. Another man that he couldn't save. Ianto deepened the kiss before Jack could, and Ianto pushed his body up against Jack's grinding against him. Jack put his hand on Ianto's clothed ass and pulled him as close as he could. _

_"I need you Ianto… every minute of every day I need you…" Jack breathed._

_"I'll be yours forever, Jack," Ianto promised. _

_Jack wished that could be true. He wished he could hold Ianto Jones forever, but he knew that if he was lucky he would get another five years or so… but with the attrition rate Torchwood had he would likely only have another two._

_"Ianto, I'd like to take you nice and slow. To kiss you from head to toe and make you come until your eyes cross… but we don't have that kind of time."_

_"Yeah, Jack, I know. Just take me already," Ianto moaned. "We don't even need to get naked, I just want to feel you."_

_Jack could live with that. He started to undo Ianto's trousers pushing them and his boxers down, he grinned when he felt that the man was hard as a rock already. "Ianto I… you're brilliant." Fuck, he had almost said the forbidden word. _

_"Yeah Jack, you're brilliant too. Hurry up, damnit!" Ianto demanded, his hands hastily working on Jack's trousers. Jack pulled the Welshman in for another kiss then bent him over the desk. _

_The lube was always in reach, and Jack took care to open Ianto for him. He entered him swiftly, relishing in the moan that came from his Welshman. He didn't waste time going slow, he fucked Ianto hard and fast, making the younger man cry out in pleasure. When Ianto's body began to tremble slightly Jack knew he was close. He reached his hand around Ianto and gripped Ianto's cock firmly, stoking it in time with his thrusts. It didn't take long for them to both cry out their releases. _

_They got exactly three minutes to recover before the phone started ringing again. _

**_TW—TW—TW _**

_For once Jack was happy to be alive. Being in the darkness for three days had been rather frightening. All he wanted to do was take Ianto against his desk, but in his rush he had broken that damn decanter. As he walked through the Hub trying to remember which closet was the supply closet he froze. The Doctor's hand… it was glowing. _

_With one longing look back at his office he grabbed the hand and made a run for the Plass. The Doctor was a time traveler; he would be able to bring Jack back to this exact moment. Ianto wouldn't even know he was gone._


	21. Chapter 21

AN: Taamar and I were on fire today and we got this one ready super quick. So here it is. It's a bit on the darkish side.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Warnings: Usual

Spoilers: Doctor Who (Utopia and Sound of Drums.)

Rating: MA

**_Jack_**

_Jack should have expected that the Doctor would be less than pleased to see him. Even the TARDIS was upset. Of course, to top it all off, the Doctor didn't even have a way to fix him. A part of Jack had hoped, prayed even, that the Doctor would be able to fix his immortality so he could go back to Ianto and grow old with him. But alas, there was no cure. Jack was destined to spend eternity alone. _

_So now, as Jack, Martha, and the Doctor tried to keep the feral Futurekind from getting into the room, Jack felt a sense of hopelessness. He was at the end of the universe, he was going to be eaten at the end of the universe, and he would never see Cardiff or Ianto again. It had all been for naught. Then, as usually happens when the Doctor is involved, they found a way out. He fixed Jack's vortex manipulator with his sonic screwdriver and the three transported themselves back to 2008. _

_When, shortly after their arrival, they discovered that a demented Time Lord had become the Prime Minister, Jack started trying to contact his team. All four of their phones went to voice mail. He knew he didn't have time to travel to Cardiff to warn them in in person, so he looked through his contacts list, trying to find anyone that could be of help. He passed up Alice's name. She didn't need to get involved in this. Andy Davison? No, there was nothing he could do. No one on his contact list looked promising until he saw Iden Miller's name (right after Ianto's). Maybe he could help, at least to locate Ianto? _

_The phone rang three times before Iden picked up. "Hello, Jack," Iden answered._

_Jack felt his breathe catch. Maybe it was because he missed his Welshman, but if he didn't know better he would have thought it was Ianto's voice on the other end of his phone. Damn those Welsh accents, how was it possible for them to cause his cock to stir in such an inappropriate situation? The world could be ending. "Hello, Iden, listen I'm not calling you to remind you to come into the base and fill out your alien paperwork..."_

_"There's no such paperwork," Iden interjected._

_"How would you know?" Jack demanded before jumping back on to topic. "Anyway, it doesn't matter, we have a bit of an 'end of the world' type crisis about to happen. I need to get in touch with Ianto. When was the last time you heard from him?"_

_"About a month or so ago."_

_"Are you still in America?"_

_"Nope, I've come to London, there was something I had to do here. I'll figure out what and when it is eventually. Are you in London, Jack?"_

_"Yes, we should meet up."_

_"Ahh… no. I don't think that would be wise. I've seen your photo on the news."_

_Jack looked down at his feet. "You're right, you don't need to be involved in this. Ruby needs her father."_

**Iden Miller**

Ianto hung up the phone with Jack and looked back up at the new Prime Minister, Harold Saxon. He had made it easy for them to take him into custody. He had practically walked up Downing Street and held up his hands in surrender, and the only reason he hadn't done so was that he didn't want them to know he _wanted_ to be there.

When he had seen that Saxon was indeed going to become Prime Minister he had enacted Emergency Protocol 11. All Rift Children were in hiding, and they had taken Team Torchwood with them. Team Torchwood, however, would be Retconned and sent on their way as soon as the President of The United States was assassinated on the Valiant.

"Oh how cute… he doesn't know about you." The Master grinned after Ianto snapped his phone shut. "You know something, though, don't you? You know what's going to happen in the future."

"No, I don't," Ianto lied. He did know. He knew that this was the beginning of the Year That Never Was. He knew he was going to live through the year, and remember the year, and he knew that the man sitting in front of him was going to die.

"Where are they? His little group… where have you hidden them?" Saxon asked, getting up and bending over his desk to get into Ianto's face.

"They are somewhere safe." Ianto replied, keeping his face neutral. Jason's panic room was relatively safe.

"Yes, together with all the Children. Hidden behind lead. You think I won't find them?"

"I know you'll find them. I just don't want you to find them yet!"

The Master came around the desk and leaned aggressively into Ianto's personal space "What does it matter, Jones? Whether I kill them today or kill them tomorrow, they will still die."

Ianto didn't reply. If they died today they would stay that way, but once the Year started it wouldn't matter. They would all come back when time reset. They just had to keep safe until then.

"Fine. I still have you. You're his favorite anyway, as far as he knows, and a lot more entertaining to play with," the Master said then he stood up and looked at his guard at the door. "Have him transferred to the Valiant."

**TW—TW—TW **

Ianto stared at the sixty tally marks on the wall of his concrete cell. He would mark a new one every time they brought him breakfast, the only way he had to count days. He hadn't seen Jack yet; he had a feeling the Master was saving Ianto and Jack's reunion for a day when he wanted a bit of excitement.

Ianto tried not to think about the people on Earth. Whatever they were experiencing now, they wouldn't remember it. He tried to ignore the Master when he would come in with news from Earth. "I've found Jack's little team." He taunted on day fifteen. "Would you like to see the pictures?"

Ianto hadn't wanted to see the pictures, but they had been forced upon him. He would never be able to forget them.

"I've found the leader of your Cardiff Rift. Oh, he's a fighter apparently," The Master stated on day twenty-three. Jason had been lead into the cell block his clothes showing obvious wear and tear, his eyes full of pain. "He took out three of my men when my Toclafane brought him on board. No hard feelings though, they're replaceable."

Jason was forced to his knees in front of Ianto's cell. Ianto rushed to the bars, putting a hand though them to caress Jason's face. "They didn't get him," Jason whispered before the Master raised his gun to the man's temple and shot him in the head. The pain of losing Jason was unbearable. Ianto assumed that he had meant that Adrian was still free, and that gave him something to cling to. God, he was proud of his guardian.

But nothing could compare to day fifty-two. That was when they had found Ruby. He couldn't even think about it. Ianto closed his eyes and shook the thoughts from his head. It wouldn't help to dwell on them anyway.

The sound of someone clearing their throat pulled Ianto from his morbid thoughts. He turned toward the door of his cell to see the Master standing there with a ridiculous smile on his face.

"So, did you want to see Jack?"

"Not particularly," Ianto replied. He didn't want to see his lover in pain, and he knew that seeing Ianto in pain would destroy Jack.

"Oh… that's too bad. Boys, take him to see the freak. Strip him down when you get him there, be sure to do it in the most brutal way possible." The Master grinned a cheerless smile, showing his teeth.

Ianto moved to the back of his cell, trying to avoid the inevitable, or at least delay it. He punched the first guy who tried to grab him and spit on the second. He was pretty sure he broke the third guy's wrist and he was positive the fourth wouldn't be able to father children. Ultimately it took five blokes to restrain him, cuff him, and pull him out of his cell.

Jack looked broken chained up in the bowels of the Valiant. Ianto tore away from his captors and ran toward his lover. He buried his face into the crook of Jack's neck and breathed in his pheromones before he was pulled him away. The tattered remnants of his suit were ripped from him, and he closed his eyes as he listened to the desperate, heartrending cries of his lover.

"Let him go!" Jack growled pointlessly. "Get your hands off him!"

"It's okay, Jack," Ianto tried to say looking up at his lover as one of the guards forced him to the floor. He went down with a thud and saw stars before losing consciousness. When he returned to awareness he was facing Jack, strung up the same way.

"Ianto, look at me," Jack begged. Ianto looked up to meet Jack's eyes. "Just stay focused on me." Jack continued. His voice was ragged, shaking.

"It's okay, Jack," Ianto repeated, "I'm going to be okay,"

When Ianto was shot in the knee from behind he tried to keep his scream in. He knew that's what the Master wanted, he wanted to hear Ianto's pain, and Ianto wouldn't give him that, he'd hold it in as long as he could.

"Let him go!" Jack yelled, pulling against his chains.

Ianto could feel the muscles in his knee healing quickly. It was painful, but he held in his pain. He locked eyes with Jack and bit his lip. "It's okay Jack. I've had worse," Ianto grunted through his clenched teeth.

"Ianto, just look at me, okay? Stay with me. I'm so sorry," Jack continued.

"It's not your fault," Ianto insisted. He could feel the bones of his knee growing back, and fuck did it hurt. Ianto wasn't lying when he said he'd had worse, however.

"Oh, but isn't it?" Inquired Saxon, coming into Ianto's line of sight. He was twirling a small scalpel in his hands, flipping it deftly between his fingers. Ianto locked eyes with Jack again. "See Jack, your little Ianto here has a very fascinating trick. Almost as impressive as yours." Ianto felt the cool metal of the scalpel on his cheek but he kept his eyes focused on Jack. The pain in his knee was no more than a slight ache now.

"Get away from him!" Jack shrieked.

"Jack, just look at me," Ianto said in a calming voice. Jack's eyes snapped to Ianto's.

"How cute. Do you find courage in each other's eyes?" The Master asked. Ianto felt the sting of the scalpel cutting into the flesh of his cheek, but he didn't even flinch. He was in the zone, and nothing the Master did would break him out of it. All he had to do was focus on Jack.

Ianto could tell the moment that Jack realized Ianto's knee was healing. It was immediately followed by the Captain noticing that the new cut on Ianto's cheek was healing as well. "This is normal Jack," Ianto explained. "It's okay."

For a moment it felt like Ianto and Jack were the only ones in the room, until the Saxon stabbed Ianto in the side with the scalpel. "Fuck!" Ianto growled losing his composure for a moment.

"See, it's a lot more fun when you scream," Saxon chimed.

"That's true for a lot of things," Ianto grunted out. He looked at Jack, trying to regain enough calm to get back into his zone. It was Jack's face that he had summoned on the Spaceship of Hell; thoughts of Jack had helped him through so many things, and having Jack in front of him only made it easier to get into that head space that allowed him to block out physical pain.

Saxon must have recognized what he was doing, though, because before he pulled the scalpel from Ianto's side he blindfolded him. Picturing Jack was a lot harder to do that way, and Ianto realized after the third time he was stabbed that he should have had some refresher courses with Jason.

Ianto kept trying to comfort Jack despite the of pain he was experiencing, but after the second "it's okay Jack," Jack lashed back with an "It's not fucking okay!" Ianto switched his tune then. He talked about things that he and Jack had done together. Memories they shared, all the times they had said _This is one of those moments_, until finally the Master gagged him as well.

Ianto was uncertain how much time passed, but by the end he couldn't help the tears and gasps that came to him as the Master worked him over. What made it worse was the fact that he could hear Jack crying as well. Eventually, however, the Saxon lost interest and Ianto was released and taken back to his cell.

After that Ianto was taken to see Jack every seven tally marks. It was the worst form of torture to know that Jack had to watch his pain.

TW—TW—TW

The day the paradox machine was destroyed, Tish Jones was the one to help Ianto escape. She hadn't asked questions, she had just led him to the deck of the Valiant and Ianto had boarded the helicopter to return to the London. Once on solid ground he rented a car and drove straight to Cardiff. Jason was the closest person to him, and he needed desperately to reassure himself that the man was alive and unharmed.

When Ianto arrived at the mansion he barely had the car in park before he was running into the house screaming for Jason. Jason rushed down the staircase and pulled Ianto into an embrace. After the atrocity Ianto had just experienced he needed his guardian more than ever.

"Tell me what happened," Jason muttered after holding Ianto tightly and allowing him to sob in silence for almost five minutes.

"The Year That Never Was," Ianto whimpered.

Ianto stayed three days with Jason, then returned to Las Vegas. Protocol 11 was lifted and life went back to normal. Well, normal for the Minister of the Rifts, which wasn't saying much.

**_Jack_**

_Jack searched the ship three times before he found out from Tish that a group of people had already been airlifted off. Could Ianto have been one of them? Part of Jack wanted to believe that Ianto Jones had really been there, that he was like Jack. But that wasn't possible, was it? Had it all been a hallucination? _

_He questioned Tish, asked her about the prisoners who had already been taken away. What had they looked like? What were their names? She hadn't seemed interested in answering his questions. She wanted to be with her family, and Jack couldn't fault her that. He wanted to be with his as well. The team was his family, and as much as he loved the Doctor, he loved his team more. He wondered if Ianto would agree to go on a proper date. He wanted to do so much more for him._

_Jack smiled remembering when he and Ianto had gone to the cinema together. Ianto had sworn it was the last time, but Jack was sure he could figure out a way to convince his Welshman to give him another chance. _

_"Jack?" the Doctor said. "The TARDIS is all ready to go."_

_Jack turned away from staring into the blue sky and looked toward the Doctor. The Doctor looked sad, and Jack knew he had wanted to save the only other remaining Time Lord. The very thought made Jack's stomach turn. _

_"He tortured me… Drugged me, too. Made me see things that couldn't have been real." Jack sighed looking back at the sky. Couldn't have been real. Real would mean Jack might not be alone forever, but it would also mean that his Ianto had been tortured cruelly. For him. He couldn't bear it. _

_"What kind of things?" The Doctor asked._

_Jack shook his head, unable to speak of it, even to the Doctor. Instead he asked, "Is it possible for others to be like me?"_

_The Doctor placed his hand on Jack's shoulder and looked at him with pity clear in his eyes. "No…" He paused a moment before turning away. _

_Jack was left to wonder what that odd pause had meant._


	22. Chapter 22

AN: Okay first to answer a question from a guest reviewer,

_I'm a bit confused, how does Ianto remember what happened before it happened? It sounds like he's relived it again—Guest_

Ianto discussed the year that never was with Jack when he was in his first life. So what he knows about it comes from the stories that Jack told him.

I always want to answer everyone's questions but when you review as a guest I have no way to respond. I hope this was helpful my dear.

Okay, now, my beta is an awesome lady…. She worked hard trying to find a nick name for an intimate part of Ianto. I really don't know what I'd do without her.

One more note. I'm doing the NaNoWriMo… so it might be a bit hard for us to update this fic as regularly, but don't worry we will update it.

Okay, on with the show.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood

Warnings: Usual

Spoilers: Sleeper

Rating: MA

**_Jack_**

_When Jack returned to the Hub after the Doctor dropped him off he was not at all surprised to find it empty. _They are probably busy_, he thought_. I've been gone a long time, I'm sure they've had to work hard to keep up._ He needed to find them, though; he needed to know they were alive, and that the pictures the Master had shown him had been false, so he tracked Ianto's phone to an Italian restaurant, and when Jack went in to check on Ianto he found him with another man. Jack felt his heart stop. Had Ianto moved on? The man deserved so much more than Jack had given him; he shouldn't really have expected Ianto to wait._

_Jack watched, crushed, as his Welshman (damnit, there was the 'his' again. Ianto clearly wasn't his anymore) chatted, flirted, and laughed with his date. They appeared to be hitting it off, so Jack was about to leave them to it when he saw Ianto slip Retcon in to the other man's coffee while he was in the loo. Hope blossomed in Jack's heart. Perhaps there was more to it than he could see? He'd let Ianto tell him, rather than jumping to conclusions._

_After watching Ianto leave the restaurant alone, Jack headed back to the Hub to see if any of the others had shown up. Still empty. After an hour of waiting he gave up and tracked them to a residential area where he found them facing a blowfish that had taken a family hostage._

_They didn't appear pleased to see him._

**Iden Miller**

Ianto stood outside Bar Reunion and waited for John Hart. He wasn't looking forward to this at all. John Hart came strolling down the alleyway looking every bit as arrogant as he always had, though Ianto still found the man strangely attractive. _Bastard._

"Eye-Candy?" Hart exclaimed, stopping dead when he noticed Ianto leaning against the wall. Ianto pushed away from the wall. Ianto hadn't seen John since they parted ways after being on the _Ruby Jewel_ together. The two of them had, on occasion, (for lack of a better word) fucked, but only when Jack had been there as well. Ianto had always gotten the feeling that John had a bit of a crush on him, in his own egotistical way. That was fine with Ianto, though. It could very well be used to his advantage.

"Hello Nyx." Ianto smiled, putting his hand out for John to shake. As expected, John ignored Ianto's hand and pulled him into a hug. _Has he always been this easy to manipulate?_ Ianto thought, _Or is it just that I've had so much more experience now?_

"I haven't seen you in nearly ten years and you think I'm just going to want to shake your hand?" John teased, turning the hug into more of a fondling session. Ianto pushed John up against the wall and pushed his hips up against him. The best way to get John Hart to listen was to use sex in the lesson.

"I was sort of hoping you'd want more, but I didn't want to presume," Ianto breathed.

"Oh, I want more, alright…"

Ianto attacked John's neck, sucking and nipping it to leave his mark on the former Time Agent's skin.

"Fuck," John moaned. "I need a good lay, Captain Jones."

"I do too Nyx, but not today. Behave, and do what I say, and you'll be rewarded," Ianto lied, grinding into John again. John moaned wantonly. He was like putty in Ianto's hands.

"Just give me a taste," John begged. Ianto locked their lips together demanding entrance immediately, showing John who was in charge.

"Okay, that was your taste. Now, when you see little me later tonight you need to keep the fact that you know me from everyone else. I'm the leader of the Rifts on Earth. You can't let the leader of Torchwood know, understand?" Ianto rasped when he pulled away from the kiss. He thrust his clothed cock against John's one last time for good measure.

"What's Torchwood?" John asked, keeping his eyes on Ianto's lips.

"Don't worry about it." Ianto smiled. He started to pull away from John, but John gripped Ianto's hand then slipped to his knees.

"I want a better taste." John leered, his fingers making short work of the button on Ianto's trousers.

Ianto was left with a dilemma: let John do it, and walk away satisfied, although it was a bit wrong being as he had no plans of actually returning the favor, or walk away with his hard on intact. _Decisions, decisions. _

John made up Ianto's mind for him when he pulled Ianto's cock out and sucked gently on the tip. There was no going back after that. Ianto twisted his fingers in John's hair, and let the man take him all the way to completion, which didn't take long because it had been awhile for Ianto, and John was a bit of an expert.

"Go catch up with Jax. I know that's why you're here," Ianto sighed, pulling John back to his feet and wiping a bit of cum off the younger man's mouth. John grabbed Ianto's hand and licked the finger clean.

"Okay, I'll see you later then?" John asked, reluctantly letting go of Ianto's hand.

Ianto nodded. "Of course," he stated. John walked passed him and toward the entrance of the bar. Ianto slapped John's ass, then went to his car so he could head back to his hotel. Jason didn't know he was in town yet; Ianto was waiting until Tammy and Ruby arrived the next morning before heading to Jason's.

Adrian had called Ianto the day Adrian had arrived back in Cardiff. Jason was very upset with Ianto and Little Ianto; he felt like he had been used and mistreated by both. Ianto had tried to call him, but Jason would just deflect his calls to Adrian.

"Jason wants me to tell you that all matters regarding the Children will need to go through me. He doesn't wish to speak with you," Adrian had said, his tone diplomatic, which told Ianto that his friend didn't like being in the middle of his two favorite people. Ianto thought Jason was being childish, even if he did have good reason to be upset. Ianto still felt bad about sleeping with Jason all those years ago without taking his guardian's feelings into account, and while he knew it was necessary, he felt bad about pushing Jason into things to preserve the timeline. It just sucked all around.

**TW—TW—TW **

"Iden, you have to stay still," Adrian growled as he once again brought his make-up sponge to Ianto's face.

"It feels weird. Why do girls like this?" Ianto complained.

"Beats me," Adrian sighed.

"Adrian!" Jason's voice called from another area of the house.

"We're in the bathroom!" Ianto called back, causing Adrian to snort in irritation.

"You know, what is the point of the intercom system if neither of you ever use it?" Adrian huffed.

"Beats me," Ianto grinned.

Jason busted into the bathroom that he and Adrian shared. "Who the fuck is in my parking…" Jason began, then stopped when he saw Ianto. "Why are you here?" he sneered. Ianto's hope that maybe Jason just needed to see him to forgive him fell to the wayside.

"It's nice to see you too, Jason," Ianto replied pleasantly. Ianto was there, for one, because he had finally gotten everything sorted in Vegas, and for two, because Cardiff was his home. There was also the added bonus that he would be spending a few days with Jack and the rest of his old friends.

"You've used me. Every moment we've ever shared was you using me!" Jason growled. Ianto moved Adrian's hand off him and stood up. He wanted to fix things with Jason.

"That's not true, Jace."

"Yes it is." Jason growled. "The sex, the friendship, all of it, a lie."

Adrian moved slowly toward Jason, wrapped on arm around his waist, and gently caressed his face. Jason's eyes left Ianto's and looked down at his lover's. "You know that's not true," Adrian said gently.

Jason pulled away. "It is," He snarled and stormed out of the bathroom. Ianto locked eyes with Adrian for a moment, then looked away out of shame. He had used Jason for many things, but he loved and needed Jason. There was so much more to his feelings than the man knew.

"And you need to get your rental out of my spot. You might be the bloody Minister, but I'm the king of this house," Jason commanded, coming back into the bathroom before leaving just as quickly, "Fucking wanker," he breathed out as he stormed off.

"He doesn't mean it," Adrian promised. "It would be easier on everyone if you moved your car, though."

"Yeah," Ianto agreed. "I did pay for the mansion though… so technically_—_"

"Quit," Adrian warned, frowning. "I hope they can work their issues out while Little Ianto is here. Jason is hard to deal with when he's irritable." Adrian walked over to the intercom system with an exasperated sigh. "Jason, if you yell throughout OUR home again I will cut you off for at least three days. You may be the King, but I'm the queen, and I control your sex life."

Ianto let out a little laugh.

"I don't know what you're laughing about," Adrian said, pointing an accusing finger at Ianto, "you yell through my house again and you can go stay in a hotel. You both know I hate yelling. Now, let's finish your make-up."

"Can we have intercom sex?" Jason's hopeful voice came through the intercom two seconds later. Adrian just sighed, and shook his head.

**TW—TW—TW **

Ianto smiled sadly when he took in the old Hub, surprised to find that he remembered everything perfectly, even after one hundred fifty years. How odd.

"Hey, how did things with Jason go?" Jack asked, coming out of his office.

Ianto let himself take in his lover for a moment before answering. It was a bit strange for a moment as Ianto realized that he was older than Jack now by about twenty-five years. "Good. I think we worked out all our issues."

"That's nice," Jack said, his tone not at all convincing. Ianto attempted to pretend that Jack's obvious jealously bothered him, but it didn't. He had changed so much, and Ianto was doubtful that anything that used to bother him about his lover would anymore.

"I've missed you," Ianto sighed. He closed the space between him and Jack and pulled Jack in for a kiss, "so much." Ianto began undoing the buttons on Jack's shirt. He lost patience at the second button and ripped the shirt open. He paused momentarily to remind himself that he was pretending to be Little Ianto, and thus needed to hold back and hide his strength. "I want you, Jack. Now." He breathed.

"Oh, the fun we had this morning wasn't enough for you?" Jack teased. Ianto wasn't listening, however; he was too busy undoing Jack's trousers. Falling to his knees, Ianto ran his hands up Jack's chest and pulled at the younger immortal's pants with his teeth. Into ran his hand back down Jack's side and hooked his thumbs in the man's waistband. Still pulling at Jack's trousers with his teeth, Ianto lowered the trousers until they were around Jack's ankles.

Ever so slowly, Ianto began to kiss his way back up Jack's legs until he reached the man's cock. "Ianto, the team will probably be in soon," Jack breathed out.

"The more the merrier," Ianto replied, smiling up at Jack as he gripped the man's cock then slide his mouth over the head.

Ianto started a steady pace, reveling in every sweet moan he pulled from his lovers lips. Ianto pulled away when he felt Jack start to tremble.

"Have you been practicing while I was away?" Jack teased.

"Yes," Said Ianto, deadpan, as he stood. "Now be a good Captain and bend over Owen's desk."

"Who've you been practicing on?" Jack pouted.

"Owen," Ianto deadpanned again, leading Jack over to Owen's desk and pushing the Captain over it swatting his ass slightly, then pulling a bottle of lube out of his own suit pocket.

Jack looked back at Ianto as Ianto poured a bit of lube onto his fingers. "Since when do you keep lube in your suit?"

Ianto looked at Jack and grinned. "Since when do you ask so many questions during sex?"

Jack opened his mouth as if to answer, but Ianto poured some lube down the captain's ass crack causing the man to jump. "That was cold," Jack pretended to pout. Ianto just smiled and ran his fingers over Jack's pucker, which was, apparently, an effective way to shut Jack up. He continued to massage the lube over Jack's entrance, slipping a finger in every so often just to tease. He wasn't going to go any further until Jack begged.

"Ianto, I promise if you don't fuck me soon I'm going to take control." Jack growled.

That was more of a threat than a beg, but Ianto took what he could get and began to seriously stretch his lover until he was satisfied he wouldn't hurt him, then pulled his own trousers down to his knees and sank into Jack's heat.

"Thank you," Jack moaned, pushing back toward Ianto. Ianto gripped his lover's hips and began to move, loving the feeling of being with Jack once again and never wanting it to end.

**TW—TW—TW **

The team showed up later in the day, but as happy as Ianto was to see them all, including Gwen, he really just wanted to be alone with Jack. Mostly because he kept finding himself doing things he was sure he would never have done when he was Little Ianto. Things like pinching Jack's ass when he walked by him, or not swatting Jack's hand away when he pulled Ianto in for a quick cuddle. Worse, he had allowed Jack to kiss him full force when they were separated from the others only by a glass wall.

It was obvious to Ianto that Tosh had caught on when she bent down and whispered in his ear, "Ianto is going to be so mad at you."

At the end of the day Ianto found himself in Jack's office leaning against the desk while Jack typed up a formal apology to the Queen. He was so engrossed in watching the man that he didn't hear Tosh walk in.

"It was kinda nice to meet your friend, Jack. I mean, other than the obvious not-nice parts," Tosh said.

"Why?" Jack questioned, not looking up from his computer.

"I don't know, I always thought that maybe you were just extra interested in sex… but it would seem it's quite a normal thing."

Ianto looked back at her. "No, you can't know if it's normal after only meeting two of them."

"You could assume," Tosh smiled.

"Tosh, I know you, and you don't assume things."

"Okay, Ianto… I was just trying to make lemonade out of the lemons we were handed yesterday."

Ianto smiled, then focused his attention back toward Jack. "I bet if we ever needed to interrogate John Hart, or get him to do what we wanted, the best thing to do would be to use sex." He said, watching to see what kind of reaction Jack would have. Jack grinned slightly but didn't turn his head from the computer monitor. "I bet it would work with you, too." Ianto added. He smirked as Jack's grin grew.

Tosh sighed and stood up, catching Ianto's attention once more. "Okay, once the conversation turns to interrogation techniques, it's best I leave. Besides, I have an important phone call to make." She said, winking at Ianto and leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

Ianto looked over at Jack, who looked to be reading over his letter to the Queen. Ianto bent over him and turned just the monitor off.

Jack looked at him with clear confusion. "While I absolutely agree that you need to apologize to the Queen, I feel like there is someone else who needs an apology first."

"I've already apologized to you, Ianto," Jack replied. Ianto rolled Jack's chair away from the desk slightly so he could stand directly in front of him.

"I wasn't talking about me," Ianto grinned, then he looked down toward his cock, which was already starting to stir.

Jack rolled the chair closer to Ianto and ran a hand over Ianto's trousers. "I'm so sorry Little Ianto," Jack began.

Ianto had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing. Once he had himself under control he shook his head. "Give it a name that doesn't have the word 'little' in it."

"I'm sorry, Big Max, I never should have left you. Have you been aching for me?" Jack revised, his hands already on Ianto's trouser button.

This time Ianto couldn't suppress a bark of laughter, but he pushed his amusement aside, sure Jack could make him forget. "It has," he breathed, letting out a small moan when Jack mouthed him through his clothes. Jack pulled away and looked up.

"Everyone is still here, Ianto." Jack grinned.

"Yeah," Ianto said "I know."

"And you want me to suck your cock?"

"What does one thing have to do with the other?"

Jack shrugged and undid the button and zip of Ianto's trousers. It took him no time at all to pull Ianto's needy cock out. Jack's tongue went over the slit, and Ianto let out a little whine.

At that exact moment the door opened and Tosh stuck her head in. Jack quickly tucked Ianto away.

"Ianto, I think Owen's messing with you coffee machine. Also, I'm pretty sure I saw him give the pterodactyl a chocolate without requiring her to do a trick first. I thought I'd tell you, I know you'd hate to have to retrain her."

He regretted having told Tosh to interrupt back when he had been Little Ianto. He regretted it very much.

**TW—TW—TW **

"Ianto," Jack whispered. It was the middle of the night and Ianto had been staring at the dark ceiling of Jack bunker.

"Yes," Ianto replied.

"Why are you still awake?"

"How did you know I was?"

"Well, for one thing, you weren't snoring," Jack teased.

"I don't snore," Ianto pouted.

Jack turned in the small bed and wrapped his arm around Ianto's waist. "And how would you know?"

Ianto shrugged, turning toward Jack. "I know everything, don't you remember?"

"Ahh… how could I forget," Jack replied, running a hand up and down Ianto's back. Ianto very gently kissed Jack's lips then pulled away and breathed in his lover's pheromones. He realized it would be a perfect moment to say he loved him if they were a normal couple.

The hatch to Jack's office opened suddenly and a light from the office above shone in. "I'm sorry," Tosh's voice came, "but there's been an curious murder and we need to get there quick."

"Okay Tosh. I'll be up in a moment," Jack called, and the hatch was closed again. "You stay here and try and get a bit of sleep while I deal with this."

"Jack, I'm not just the tea-boy anymore. I can handle helping with missions."

"I know, Yan. But you've been up all night, and everyone needs sleep. Even badasses like you."

"You've been up all night, too," Ianto pointed out.

"Yes… well, I'm the Captain," Jack teased before kissing Ianto once more and climbing out of bed. Ianto didn't want Jack to leave, but he knew he had to allow it.

"I'll have the coffee ready when you come back, sir," Ianto teased, turning in the bed and snuggling into Jack's pillow, "do take your time."

**_Jack_**

_While he changed clothes Jack decided that Ianto had been acting strange. He was extra feisty, and he had even initiated sex while the others were in the Hub. That wasn't like Ianto at all. And now that the world was indeed safe again, Jack finally had time to think about it. He began to take off his soiled shirt and wondered if Ianto's behavior might be because Ianto had really missed him. It would make sense. Most likely in another day or two things with Ianto would go back to normal, but for now he would simply enjoy it._

_Looking up from his task of buttoning his new shirt, Jack saw Ianto coming across the Hub holding the antenna Jack had attached to the SUV with duct tape. He didn't look too happy about it. Yep, there was the Ianto Jack knew and… well, he may as well admit, loved. _

**_TW—TW—TW _**

_"Hey Jack," Ianto said as he strode into the immortals office. Jack looked up from the report he was writing about Beth. _

_"Yeah, Yan?" Jack replied._

_"I've gotta go see Jason, then I'm heading home for a change of clothes."_

_"Yeah, fine. I'll be here, pretending to do paperwork." Jack grinned. His smile faded when he noticed something was off with his Welshman. He got up and walked around the desk. "Hey, what's the matter?"_

_"I just really missed you," Ianto sighed, closing his eyes and wrapping his arms around Jack, "So much," He whispered, burying his face against Jack's shoulder._

_"I know, Ianto. I'm so sorry. I promise I'm not going to leave you again," Jack soothed, kissing Ianto's hair._

_"Of course," Ianto sighed pulling away with obvious reluctance. "As I said, I'll be back later." The Welshman sighed and kissed Jack deeply before turning to leave the office. _

_Jack was left wondering why he felt like Ianto had just said 'goodbye'. _


	23. Chapter 23

**_AN: Yay. Okay, chapter 23. I'm doing okay on my Nanowrimo novel. I may be a bit behind on it but hopefully I'll pull the word count back up soon._**

**_Thanks to Taamar. Best lady in the world. _**

**_Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood._**

**_Warnings: usual_**

**_Rating: MA_**

**_Jack_**

_Ianto sat on the side of Jack's desk looking delicious in his suit, as usual. "I know you get lonely," he whispered. _

_Jack had been going over the instructions for Tommy and Tosh once more. He hated having to send Tommy back in time, especially to a time that was tainted with the horrors of war; he wanted to let Tommy stay with them, with Tosh. She deserved a man who could clearly see her beauty. Once again, however, Jack was playing the role of the bad guy, and boy did he hate it. He had begun this conversation with Ianto hoping to ease his guilt, but it had gone in an unexpected direction. _

_"Going home wouldn't fix that. Being here I've seen things I never dreamt I'd see. Loved people I never would have known if I'd just stayed where I was." Jack replied. He looked up at Ianto, trying to convey his feelings without words. "And I wouldn't change that for the world." Jack wasn't lonely when he had Ianto, though he knew soon the loneliness would come again. It was too painful to even consider._

_Ianto bent forward and captured Jack's lips, kissing him with everything he had. Jack knew that his time with the man was limited, and he didn't want to waste another second. He wanted to spend the rest of Ianto's life kissing him. He wanted to commit every inch of the man to memory._

_Ianto pulled away and stared at Jack's face as if he needed to memorize Jack's features just as Jack wanted to memorize his. His blue eyes, his button nose, and his oh so kissable lips. He had to hold back tears. So beautiful. So fleeting. _

_"How do you survive, Jack?" Ianto whispered, as if he could sense what Jack was thinking. Jack saw pain in his Welshman's eyes. Pain that, if Jack didn't know any better, seemed to match his own._

_"I have no choice," Jack replied._

_"Mentally, I mean."_

_"I live," Jack said, kissing Ianto tenderly. He didn't want to talk about it. He just wanted to live in this moment with this perfect man. _

_Ianto deepened the kiss again and sat on Jack's lap, "I need you now," he moaned against Jack's lips._

_Jack rose out of his seat bringing Ianto with him and pushed the Welshman up against his desk, attacking his neck and undoing his shirt as he went._

_"You're about to have me," Jack whispered._

_Jack wasted no time getting Ianto into his bunker. He handcuffed him to the bed, wishing to show Ianto pleasure beyond his wildest dreams. _

_"This is one of those moments, Jack," Ianto panted as they both attempted to catch their breath after their fabulous round of sex._

_"Oh yeah," Jack replied, resting his head on Ianto's chest. He and Ianto were soon fast asleep. _

_Jack woke an hour later and looked up at his Welshman's sleeping form. Something was off, he knew it. He was missing something. Usually Jack tried not to think about the Year that Never Was, especially since he had returned to find that Ianto hadn't remembered it, and that Ianto couldn't, in fact, heal quickly. Something was bugging him, though. On the first day that Saxon had tortured the image of Ianto in front of him, before the fake Ianto had been gagged he had said, "Remember the time you told me that to make it through you just lived, and afterward you made love to me? Remember, Jack… It was one of our moments." How was it possible that a phantom Ianto could remember something that hadn't even happened yet?_

**Iden Miller**

Tommy Brockless. Ianto would never forget Tommy. During the 'war to end all wars' he had fought by the man's side. He could still remember the day he first saved Tommy from a gunshot. He had shoved the young man out of the way and had taken the bullet right through his shoulder. It had hurt, but it had healed easily enough, and Tommy had never mentioned seeing his friend heal so quickly. The poor man must have questioned his sanity, but at least he hadn't told anyone.

The second time Ianto had saved Tommy it wasn't from death. The other soldiers had bullied Tommy, called him a coward, ridiculing him for always trying to find the nearest place to hide. Ianto didn't think of Tommy as a coward. He knew how brave Tommy was, but he also knew how hard war was on young boys, and sometimes it all got to be too much. Even a brave man could break. One night a couple of the men had snuck into Tommy's bunk with intent to teach him what happened to cowards. Adrian had been the one to tip Ianto off, and when they went in to rescue the boy one of the soldiers had punched Ianto in the face, smashing his nose. It had healed, of course, right in front of everyone, and after that Ianto and Adrian had had to desert the war.

Ianto had attempted to save Tommy from the firing squad Jack had told him the man would face, but he hadn't arrived in time. But now, as he dialed his old phone number, he knew he was going to lie to Tosh and tell her that he had. Sometimes lies were necessary.

**TW—TW—TW **

Alice slowly opened her front door and peered at Ianto with narrowed eyes. "My father says you aren't David Carter. He told me David Carter died."

It had been a while since he had seen Alice, mostly because he knew this was the conversation they were going to be having.

"Can I come in?" Ianto asked. He knew it was going to be a long conversation, and he wasn't really wanting to have it standing on the stoop.

She nodded and let him in. They walked into the living area and sat down on the couch.

"Is Stephen in school, then?"

"Yes," Alice replied.

"Is he doing alright…? I've missed him."

"Don't you dare," Alice snarled through gritted teeth, standing up. "It's been nearly six months since you've been here. I had to hear from my father that your wife died. I thought we were friends, David!"

"We are…"

"No, we're not! I don't even know who you are."

"I know, Alice. I'm sorry."

"Well, then, is what my father said true? Are you Iden Miller?"

"For now." Ianto said softly, looking away.

Alice plopped down beside Ianto again and sighed. "Who are you?"

"Alice, it's a bit difficult to explain."

"My father is an immortal who works for a secret organization that hunts aliens. I'm sure I can keep up, David."

"Your father's immortal?" Ianto deadpanned.

"He said you knew…" Alice began, then saw the smirk on Ianto's face and grinned in that way that reminded him so much of Jack. "David, please level with me here."

"I'm a bit like your father, Alice. Not entirely of course…" Ianto began.

"Is that why Aria died? Was it because of you?"

Ianto looked at Alice and bit his lip. It was a complicated question. It was his fault, or at least that's how he saw it, but Aria wasn't dead. She was just in another time, though he couldn't explain that to Alice. He kept it simple. "Yes."

"When I first met you I told you that I didn't let my father into my life because I wanted to protect Stephen. Did you know who my father was then?"

"No, that was complete coincidence. It took me a bit to figure it out."

"But you did… and you let us get attached to you, despite the fact that you are just like him," Alice said.

"I'm not**—**"

Alice stood up again. "Yes, you are! I want Stephen to have a normal life. No immortals, no aliens, just a normal life! So please just leave, and stay gone."

"Alice," Ianto tried, standing up.

"No! I mean it. I don't want to be part of whatever you are… So go."

Ianto reached out a hand to touch his friend and she stepped away.

"I sorry. It seems unfair to you, and it is… but my son is the most important thing to me, I won't risk him."

Ianto nodded. "If that's what you want." He agreed sadly.

"It is," she replied.

Ianto began to walk away, upset that he was losing his friend, but understanding her point.

"How do you know my father? He says you're his boyfriend's landlord."

Ianto looked back at her. "He told you about his boyfriend?" he asked. It gave Ianto a warm feeling to think that Jack had talked to Alice about him.

"Yes, Ianto Jones. They work together or something…"

"What did he say about him?"

Alice narrowed her eye. "What does it matter?"

Ianto shrugged. "I don't guess it does. He just seems like a nice kid, doesn't deserve to be wrapped up in all this nonsense." Ianto sighed then decided to give her some sort of answer to her question. "Us 'Aliens' know all about Torchwood. They're a threat to us, so you know what they say about keeping your enemies close."

"Am I considered an enemy?"

Ianto shook his head and bit his lip as tears came to his eyes. "No, but you're right; your father and I are dangerous." And with that he left Alice's house and managed to hold himself together until he made it to Jason's.

**TW—TW—TW**

Ianto very carefully poured the tiny amount of Tosh's blood he had stolen into the living flesh. He bit his lip as he watched it bubble around a bit, hoping that its bubbling state meant it was working. Adrian stood next to him looking into the deep bowl as well.

"It's going to break the bowl," he mused. Ianto looked over at him.

"No it'll be fine…"

"Seriously, I've met Tosh, and I'm certain she won't fit in that," Adrian insisted as the living flesh began to boil. Ianto looked at the bowl and realized Adrian was right. As quickly as he could he picked up the container and poured the contents to the ground. As Tosh's clone began to grow, Ianto and Adrian stood back watching in amazement until, finally, the clone took in a breath.

"Don't you dare say it," Adrian warned.

Ianto couldn't help himself. "It's alive. ALIVE!" he cackled.

"Yes, and it's naked, so let's get a gown or scrubs or something and place her on the bed, shall we?" Adrian replied, rolling his eyes, "Jason's going to be so upset when he finds out I've helped you with this scheme of yours."

Jason, as if he could sense when he was being talked about, chose that moment to enter the room. "Okay you two've—"He stopped in the middle of what he was saying, and his face turned dark."What the fuck is Tosh doing in my basement? And why is she unconscious, and why is she naked?"

Ianto looked over at his friend and shrugged.

"Don't you shrug, you know exactly why she's here." Jason growled. "Adrian, why is she here?"

Adrian looked down at the ground and mumbled under his breath.

"I'm sorry dear, I didn't catch that."

"I've helped him clone his friends so he can save them."

Ianto easily lifted Tosh's clone off the floor and placed her on one of the hospital beds in the room. He then calmly walked over to the other bowl of living flesh and dropped Owen's blood in.

"You're making another one!" Jason said with clear irritation.

Ianto shrugged again.

"Ianto Jones," Jason growled, using a tone that he saved for when he wanted to pull the 'I'm your guardian and I don't care if you're the minister, you _will_ listen to me' card. "Shrug again and see what happens."

Ianto turned to look at Jason. He bit his lip, wondering if he should test if Jason was bluffing and then, because he was feeling extra feisty, he shrugged.

Jason glared and Ianto just grinned as the clone of Owen formed of the floor. "Adrian, would you go get me a bottle of water?" Jason asked.

"Nope, I want to see what happens." Adrian grinned.

Jason's gaze went to Adrian and he raised his eyebrow. "Yeah?"

Ianto saw when it hit Adrian that Jason and Ianto had, in their own odd way, been flirting. There was a flash of anger, but it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

"So, we're going to get a vortex manipulator soon. That'll come in handy. We could use it to get into places and travel quickly." Ianto mentioned, trying to change the subject and diffuse the situation that his simple shrug had caused.

"Yeah, that sounds interesting." Jason said, catching on quickly. "I'm sure it will come in handy… how are we going to be getting it?"

"I'm going to relocate John Hart," Ianto replied. He lugged the clone Owen up off the floor and placed him on the other bed in the room.

"When's the last time you two fucked?" Adrian demanded.

"I haven't fucked John Hart in over one hundred fifty years!" Ianto shouted in the vain hope of avoiding the uncomfortable discussion he knew was coming. Both Adrian and Jason looked at him incredulously.

"But he's…" Adrian began.

"But you're… " Jason started to say. "Wait. That was your second life? I thought you were with Harkn**—**_OH_. So you three…" Jason, at least, was clearly willing to be drawn off topic.

"Jason!" Adrian snapped. He turned back to Ianto. "You knew exactly what I was asking, and don't pretend otherwise. When's the last time you and Jason fucked?"

Ianto pulled a sheet over Owen's clone and bit his lip. Damnit, this was his fault for shrugging.

"Well?" Adrian persisted when neither Ianto nor Jason spoke.

Jason let out a sigh, "You said you didn't want to know."

"Well, now I do." Adrian spat.

"Five months ago," Ianto admitted, looking down and pretending to straighten the sheet that was covering the clone. Then looking up to meet his friend's eyes.

"I see. So you haven't done it when I am in the house?" Adrian asked.

Both men shook their heads.

"And if I had gone to get a water for Jason? Would you have…?"

As Ianto insisted, "No," Jason, at the same moment, admitted, "Possibly."

Adrian sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I love you two… you're just such wankers sometimes."

"We wouldn't have," Ianto insisted.

"Why? Because you wouldn't have wanted to? Or because you still think it's okay to deny him and let him pretend that I'm you the next time we fuck? I don't like being you, I would prefer to be me!" Adrian yelled. Ianto started toward the door.

"If we're about to have a real fight I'd prefer to do it in a place with fewer objects that could hurt me if thrown." Ianto said as he retreated.

He traveled up the stairs and toward the indoor pool. The only thing Adrian could throw in there was towels and water. He leaned against one of the walls and waited on his friends. They came in, and Jason leaned on the wall next to Ianto. Adrian stood in front of both the men and crossed his arms, looking more intimidating than a scrawny 19 year old blond man should look.

"We are all going to be together forever, I hope. And, for whatever reason, both of you are sex crazed. I understand that you're going to sleep together. I just really wish you two would accept it and go about it like reasonable, rational human beings. This dancing around each other has got to stop."

Jason opened his mouth as if to speak but Adrian held up his hand to silence him. "I'm going out for the day, okay? That phrase will be my cue to you that I will be gone all day and the two of you had better release the sexual tension between you. Because I can't take it anymore."

With that Adrian turned and stalked out of the pool room.

"So… you think he's serious?" Jason asked, straining to watch Adrian walk away.

"Probably." Ianto replied, looking at his feet. "I don't know."

"Why did you make clones of Tosh and Owen?" Jason asked seriously.

"They deserve better than Torchwood."

"Hmm…" Jason replied before following after Adrian.

"Where are you going?" Ianto questioned.

"To see if he was really leaving or if it was some sort of test."

Ianto rolled his eyes. He knew that Adrian had been serious, but it still didn't make Ianto want to jump Jason. He had already wanted to do that. It did, however relieve some of the tension that he felt living in the mansion with his two best friends without a lover of his own. Could it work? Sleeping with Jason every once in a while just to take the edge off? Or would it just make things awkward?

Jason came back into the pool room. "He really left."

"Okay."

"Do you want to?" Jason tried, shifting on his feet.

Ianto looked toward the pool and shrugged.

**_Jack_**

_Jack was amazed at how quiet things had been since Gwen had gone on vacation. If anyone deserved a vacation it was Jack. He wasn't sure how long he had been in 'Hell' but it had taken a toll on him. He had given it to Gwen though, hoping she'd get over her latest spat with Rhys so the team could stop hearing about it. Gwen and Rhys were fighting about a sofa. Really, who fights about a sofa? Jack smiled when he remembered the argument he and Ianto had had about the ratty sofa in the Hub._

_"Jack, we need a new sofa," Ianto had insisted, coming into Jack's office all in a tizzy._

_"Why?" Jack had questioned, smiling at Ianto's ruffled state. He loved it when the younger man was all mussed and agitated._

_"It's stained."_

_"What sort of stain?" Jack grinned, knowing good and well what sort of stain._

_Ianto huffed. "Jack, this is serious. The others sit on that sofa."_

_"Well just turn the cushion. I'm not getting a new couch, it has sentimental value."_

_"Just turn the cushion? Jack, I can't just turn the cushion… I'm—"_

_"A neat freak," Jack had said under his breath. Looking up at his Welshman he knew it was the wrong thing to say. Ianto had stood there for a moment with his mouth slightly open. He closed it then opened it again, clearly about to blow up at Jack. "It's a nice trait, I didn't mean it in a bad way," Jack insisted, trying to dig his way out of the hole he had dug._

_"I am not a neat freak! And to prove that I'm going to just flip the bloody cushion!" _

_Jack smiled at the memory. Ianto still refused to let Jack get a new sofa, but occasionally Jack would catch the Welshman scowling at it. _

_Jack turned on his monitor to take a look at the Plass. He had nothing better to do, having given Ianto the day off, so he decided to do a bit of people watching. It was something that he and Ianto usually did together. They would find a beautiful person fight over who got dibs and then usually go call dibs on each other. They had on one occasion taken a girl back to Ianto's flat, and it had been fun, but that had been before Jack left with the Doctor. Jack wasn't sure it was something Ianto would be into now. _

_The Plass was full of people, all bustling about. Jack took them all in, the ordinary people. They all led simple beautiful lives. Jack was jealous of them; he wanted a simple, beautiful life. Jack's eye caught a blond man sitting on a bench. "Dibs," Jack grinned. Even with Ianto gone he could still play their little game. He used the buttons on his monitor to zoom into the beautiful man's face. He was reading a book, and Jack caught him wiping a tear off his cheek. Jack wondered what Ianto would say if he brought the man home. _"Ianto, I've found a lost blond, can we keep him?"

_Jack grinned. He could at least go up and find out what book the man was reading to make him cry. It was only right. Jack got up and left his office heading toward the invisible life. The pterenodon was perched near it and it squawked at Jack. _

_"I'm just going to be friendly, nothing more." Jack insisted. The prehistoric bird squawked again. "He's obviously distressed. I'm a hero type, and I can't just let him be." The bird flew away off to bother someone else, Jack presumed. Or to eat a rat. Whichever. _

_Jack rode the lift up to the Plass and walked into the open. If anyone noticed a man appearing out of nowhere no one said anything. Jack walked over to the bench were the teary-eyed man was sitting. "Is this seat taken?"_

_The man looked up from his book and sniffled. "No, go ahead." The man replied. He was French, Jack thought, though his accent showed that he spent some time in America, and of course there was a Welsh influence. Those vowels. _

_"Thanks," Jack smiled, sitting down quickly. The Frenchman went back to his book. "So what are you reading?"_

_"A book," The man replied._

_Sass. Jack loved it, but how would Ianto feel about it? _

_"I'm surprised in this day and age anyone still reads books. You know, with the internet and all. Every piece of information at your fingertips."_

_"Yes, well I'm a bit old-fashioned." The man replied._

_"Well, Mr. Old-Fashioned, what's your name?"_

_"Christian, and you?" _

_"Captain Jack Harkness. Is it the book that has made you cry? Or something else?"_

_"I wasn't crying," Christian said._

_Jack smiled. "I like a man who isn't afraid to cry in public."_

_The man bit his lip. "Listen, I don't usually do this… talk to people I don't know, but since you seem to want to talk I will. I have two best friends, right? And one of them I'm in a relationship with, but the two of them, they also like to, well—" _

_"Fuck?" Jack asked._

_"Yeah. At first I just didn't want to know that it was happening. You know, out of sight out of mind, and all that. But they make it so hard to miss. I mean, not on purpose, I know they don't mean to, but now I've told them to just do it. It's easier that way. That way we can all be together and I don't have to deal with the obvious sexual tension in the room. I've done the right thing, right?"_

_Jack frowned. "That's up to you, Christian. But if you're crying over it, then..." he let his words trail off._

_Christian held up his book. 'Harry Potter'. "Dumbledore died."_

_"Oh, of course," Jack laughed. _

_Christian sighed and shook his head. "We have an open relationship. My boyfriend and I."_

_"Oh," Jack said, raising his eyebrows. "I thought you said you were old-fashioned? It's rare to find a couple like that in the twenty-first century."_

_Christian raised an eyebrow. "Have you visited many centuries?"_

_Jack laughed. "No, just the two."_

_"Yeah, me too. I have a friend who went on vacation to the forty-second, and another who was born in the tenth. They get around."_

_Jack shook his head. "You're full of sarcasm aren't you?"_

_"Yes, you have to be if you live with my friends. It's a requirement."_

_"Where can I get an application?" _


	24. Chapter 24

AN: So I don't like the word 'quitter'. What is that anyway? Well I know what it is it means a person who stops doing something. But it's not always bad. 'Taylor quit smoking!' (Yay Taylor the fictional person I just pulled out of the air.) Anyway, I'm like 1000000000 (Warning this writer likes to embellish things.) words behind on my NaNoWriMo Novel, so I thinks it's safe to say that I quit. (Well not really I'm still writing it, just not enough of it per day.) But it's good news for all of you, or you know the 10 of you that read this, because now I have time for Rifts! (Okay… I need reviews. Prove to me that there is more than 10 of you. Really anything will work from 'great update' to an explanation as to why the universe exists.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Rating: M

Spoilers: Nothing… well, that's a lie there's a HP spoiler in there.

Warnings: Usual stuff.

**_Jack_**

_"So, Christian." Jack smiled at his new friend over his coffee. "How shall we end our little outing? Would you like me to take back to yours? Maybe walk you to your door, then part ways with a goodbye kiss?"_

_Christian returned the smile shyly. "I'm an old fashioned kinda guy, remember? I don't kiss after the first coffee date."_

_"Oh… so that means there will be a second coffee date?" Jack tried._

_"Yes." Christian admitted. "I like talking with you, Jack. It's bound to be cheaper than therapy."_

_Jack reached his hand across the table and gripped the hand Christian was using to hold his mobile. Very gently he ran is thumb over the back of the Frenchman's hand and then took the phone. "Then we should have these therapy sessions more often," Jack insisted, saving his number to Christian's phone. Jack looked up to see Christian staring at his hand, and he noticed that the Frenchman's cheeks had turned a bit pink._

_"I don't usually let complete strangers touch me."_

_"Oh… I'm sorry. I'm just a bit touchy feely, is all." Jack apologized._

_"No, it's okay. It was nice, you can touch me all you want." Christian blurted. Jack couldn't help the large grin that grew onto his face. The Frenchman's blush deepened. "Oh god, I didn't mean it like that—I just… fuck, I think I should go. My boyfriend will probably be wondering where I've been."_

_"I thought you said he was shagging your other friend?" Jack said, getting up. The exact change for both coffees was already on the table. _

_"Yes well, I'm guessing they'll be done by now. God, I hope so, it's been a few hours." Christian replied, pulling his coat around him and walking quickly toward the door of the café. _

_Jack gave the barista a wave and a wink and rushed after the flustered man. "Christian," he called, running to catch up. Christian stopped and looked at Jack._

_"There are only two people alive that I let touch me. I have touching issues. It's difficult to explain. I let my best friend David touch me, platonically. It took me a while to let him, though. However, my boyfriend, Mon Amour, it was the first time we met. I mean, not right away, I denied his first hand shake, but by the end of the night I was in his bed. So the fact that I didn't recoil from your touch is a bit… well, it's fucking scary as shit."_

_Jack stood still for a moment then very slowly he reached out a hand and caressed Christian's cheek. "So? We're just friends. You have a lover, I have a lover. We'll get together, and complain about them then go back to them. And that's all this will be, if you'd like."_

_Christian leaned into the touch and closed his eyes. "Okay."_

_Jack walked Christian to his car in a nearby parking garage. He felt a connection to the man. Not like his connection with Ianto, of course, but a connection nonetheless. The man had a calming effect about him._

_"Would you like my number as well?" Christian asked just before he opened his car door._

_"I would," Jack responded. He pulled his phone out of his coat pocket, opened up his contacts list, and handed the phone to Christian. _

_Christian typed in his number, then handed the phone back to Jack. "Thanks, Jack. You're a pretty nice guy; I can see what—your lover sees in you." Then, to Jack's surprise, the Frenchman stood up onto his tip toes and pressed his lips against Jack's._

_The kiss ended quickly, and before Jack recovered from his shock the Mini was pulling away. Jack walked back to the Hub, whistling cheerfully. He'd had a nice day making a new friend. _

**Iden Miller**

"Iden… just because he told us to doesn't mean we have to. I mean, I'm not sure he really wants us to, anyway," Jason said, breaking into Ianto's thoughts.

Ianto looked up from the blue water of the pool and met Jason's eyes. "Do you want to?"

Jason walked over to Ianto and pulled him away from the pool before pressing him up against the nearest wall and kissing him deeply. Ianto began to respond despite himself. Jason pulled back and looked into Ianto's eyes. "I always want you, but that doesn't mean that I pretend Adrian is you. I haven't done that since the convention. So if you do or don't, I don't want what he said to influence you in any way. I also don't want you to think that I will get all attached to you again. I know better now, Iden; your heart belongs to Jack, and mine belongs to Adrian."

With a nod, Ianto gently pushed Jason away. "I just need a bit of time alone," he said quietly. Then, as quickly as he could before he could change his mind, he left the pool room and headed to his room on the third floor.

Ianto sat on the floor in his room looking at pictures. Most of what he had were of him and Aria, but he had managed to steal a few of him and Jack from his younger self's flat, and there were many of him and Jason and an equal amount of him and Adrian. He only had one of him with Anna, and three with Brody. He had loved all of them. Still loved them all, even the ones he hadn't seen in decades.

Jack, because he was brave and handsome, and because he understood Ianto, even if he didn't realize it. Adrian, Ianto loved because he was loyal, and fun to be around. Because, of all of them, Adrian was the one who never hesitated to tell Ianto when he was being stupid. Jason had trained Ianto, he had been his rock. The man had held him up on so many occasions it was hard to keep track. He had also been Ianto's first lover, and there was no replacing that spot in Ianto's heart. Aria had always taken care of him, though he hadn't realized it at the time. In a way she reminded him of his younger self, always caring for Jack. Anna had been there to help him though some of his dark times, times when he would just give into the sadness of having Jack so close and not being able to have him. Brody was amazing and annoying at the same time. He pushed Ianto's limits in a way that Jack never had. Jack could be taught not to leave clothing lying around, and how to clean a kitchen; Brody needed to be told over and over. But Ianto loved him, sometimes he felt like Brody was to him as he had been to Jason in his first life.

Ianto ran his finger over his charge's young face in the photograph. The man was sticking his tongue out in it_. So attractive, _Ianto remembered saying before snapping the picture. With a stifled sob, Ianto allowed himself to cry. He only had Adrian and Jason left, and slowly he felt like he was pushing them away as well. Had he been flirting too much with Jason? He wasn't trying to, he tried not to lead the man on, but sometimes he would just fall into old habits.

A knock on his door drew Ianto out of his pity fest. He placed the old picture down and wiped a tear from his cheek. "Come in," he called out.

The door opened and Adrian walked in. "Jason said you two didn't do anything."

"Yeah," Ianto replied.

Adrian came the rest of the way into the room and shut the door. "Why the fuck not? I told you to."

For some reason Adrian's words pissed Ianto off. How was it his business when Ianto had sex, or with whom? "Do I tell you who to fuck?" He growled, standing up.

Adrian took a step back. "No."

"Then what gives you the right to tell me who I should fuck?"

"I'm the only reason you hold back. I know it, so I was giving you my permission!"

"Like I need your permission!" Ianto replied harshly.

"I don't need yours either, you know. I bet I could have Jack just as easily as you could have Jason."

Ianto opened his mouth in shock. "Oh, I don't think so. Jack likes a man who actually participates in sex!" That was a low blow, plus Ianto wasn't even sure what kind of participant Adrian was during sex, nor did he particularly want to know.

"How the fuck would you know what Jack really wants, you think you're some kind of expert? Sex isn't something that practice makes perfect." Adrian snarled.

"And what does that mean, exactly?" Ianto spat back.

"That you're a fucking slut!"

Adrian took a step toward Ianto's dresser. There were plenty of things there for the man to throw in anger. Ianto was too quick, though. He pulled Adrian away from the dresser and tossed him onto the bed. Adrian let out a startled cry as Ianto straddled him, pinning his hands above his head. Ianto had never felt so out of control; he had never once touched Adrian in anger, but he couldn't stop himself.

"Let me go!" Adrian yelled frantically. "Let me go!" he screamed again when Ianto didn't comply.

Ianto was suddenly pulled away from Adrian and tossed into a wall with such force that Ianto was sure it had caused drywall damage. Ianto fell down the wall and wrapped his arms around his knees. He looked up onto his bed to see Adrian clinging to Jason with his eyes closed and his body shaking. Ianto barely had time to make it to the en suite bathroom before he vomited the contents of his stomach.

_I must be losing it,_ Ianto decided, _Going bat-shit crazy, finally, after two hundred and two years._ He flushed the toilet and leaned back against the wall. He needed a break, but he just couldn't take one. There was simply too much happening. He closed his eyes and let a new round of tears come. He must have fallen asleep, because the next thing he knew Adrian was gently wiping his face with a wet rag.

"I'm so sorry," Ianto sputtered out, his voice rough.

"I know, me too."

TW—TW—TW

"So we just inject it into their necks and it will make them fall asleep. It won't hurt them. Well, I actually don't know if it will hurt or not because I don't remember, but I'm pretty sure it won't. However if it does they won't remember anyway. So— " Ianto explained to Jason and Adrian as he filled three syringes with Retcon.

"Stop rambling," Jason growled through gritted teeth. Jason was still upset about the previous night's fight. The fact that both Adrian and Ianto were being civil about it didn't seem to matter to him. Ianto understood though, he was upset at (and ashamed of) his behavior as well. So much so that he was going out of his way to avoid meeting either of his friends' eyes.

"Okay, so who's doing who?" Adrian asked.

Ianto peeked a look at Jason to see if he was going to make a joke about what Adrian's accidental double entendre. Nothing. Ianto couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Jason this upset without violence.

"Umm… Jason can do Ianto, I'll take Owen, and you do Tosh." When neither man said anything else, Ianto let out a sigh and continued, "Let's go wait for them outside. We can administer the drug in the dining room. Adrian and I will get Owen and Tosh to sit. Jason, it's your choice how you want to handle Ianto."

Jason grunted in reply.

Five minutes lather the three were waiting outside as Ianto's old car came up the drive. Ianto took a deep breath and tried to get in a minister's state of mind. This was going to be a hard one to remain calm through.

Tosh was out of the car and marching angrily over to Ianto before Little Ianto had even fully parked it.

"Tell me what this is about Iden. Now. I wanted to shop!" Tosh said with irritation.

"All in due time," Ianto replied. She narrowed her eye and began to pout just as Owen and little Ianto walked up.

"He won't tell me either," Tosh snapped.

"Hello Owen. Long time, no see," Ianto said holding out his hand for the doctor to shake and ignoring Toshiko's pouting.

Owen reluctantly shook Ianto's hand. "Yeah," he said, clearly confused and alarmed.

"Well, let's have a little meeting inside, shall we?" Ianto announced, clapping his hands together.

"Please have a seat," Adrian said sweetly to Tosh when they all reached the dining room. He pulled her chair out for her while Ianto did the same for Owen, and the two sat. Little Ianto went to take a seat as well but Jason held him back.

Ianto and Adrian injected Owen and Tosh with the Retcon, and they both went limp, their heads falling to the table.

"What the hell," Little Ianto yelled, trying to pull away from Jason's grasp.

"It's okay, Ianto," Jason whispered before injecting Little Ianto with his own dose of Retcon. Jason very carefully lowered the younger Ianto to the floor. "What now?" he asked, looking up toward Ianto but not meeting his eye.

"We just need to switch the real Tosh and Owen with the clones, set up the psychic projection, then take all three of them back to their flats."

"Sounds easy enough," Adrian sighed.

TW—TW—TW

"So, Ianto hasn't called me yet to complain about not remembering yesterday, should I be worried?" Jason asked over breakfast the following morning. Apparently he was speaking to Ianto again. Ianto hoped that meant he had been forgiven.

"No, he will eventually. You could call him, if you want. I'm leaving town tomorrow to go to Vegas for a few days. I assume you two can survive without me." Ianto replied. He picked up the plate that Ruby had thrown on the ground, preferring to eat her waffles of the surface of her highchair.

Adrian's text message signal went off, and Ianto looked up to see Adrian smiling at his phone. There was also a slight blush to his cheeks. Ianto had only ever seen one person get that kind of response from Adrian, and that was Jason. But Jason was sitting beside Ianto looking up at Adrian with a confused expression.

"Who's that you're texting?" Jason asked.

Adrian looked up from his phone as if he was in trouble. "No one... it's not important. We'll be fine, Iden, take your time." Adrian said trying to focus the attention back onto Ianto.

"It looks important." Jason replied, not allowing the attention to be diverted.

"Well, looks are deceiving. It's nothing. Listen, I'm going to go to town in a bit. Do you two need anything?"

"What are you going for? I can send someone? I could go with you?" Jason said, standing up.

"Since when do I have to tell you everything?" Adrian asked, sending a reply text.

"Spill it Frenchie," Ianto teased. Adrian looked up at Ianto for a moment then bit his lip.

"Frenchie!" Ruby squealed.

Adrian rolled his eyes and sighed. Ianto held in a laugh; being called 'Frenchie' by his niece wasn't going to make Adrian happy, but he knew his friend would never say anything about it. "I've made a new friend, is all. I'm going to have coffee with said friend… It's not a big deal. Really."

"Then why did you try to hide it? If it's someone you're sleeping with I'm okay with that, I just want to know and maybe get invited to the party." Jason interjected.

"I'm not sleeping with this person, Jace. I would discuss something like that with you." Adrian smiled.

"Is it a Rift Child?" Ianto asked. He hoped it was, it hurt too much to have normal humans as friends.

"No… just a guy I met on the Plass Saturday."

"What's his name?" Jason asked.

"Are names really all that important?" Adrian tried.

"Who is it?" Ianto demanded.

"Okay fine, since you two won't let it go. It's Jack, okay? He saw me reading on the Plass, and I was crying because Dumbledore died—"

"What? Hello, spoilers!" Jason shrieked.

"Sorry," Adrian sighed, "Anyway, we just talked while we had coffee, then we exchanged numbers and…" Adrian stopped and looked into his coffee cup. "Anyway, I won't be long."

"What happened after you exchanged numbers?" Ianto pressed, knowing there must be more.

"We may have kissed."

Ianto looked at Jason, who looked just a bit livid. "He kissed you!"

"No. I kissed him." Adrian admitted.

**_Jack_**

_Jack knew better than to believe Ianto when he said it was his sister calling while they were all sitting around eating pizza earlier in the day. Jack knew it was probably Jason, the man was always calling Ianto. Jack didn't mind, really. He just hated that Ianto felt he couldn't tell him about it. What did it matter? Jack had reluctantly accepted that Ianto and Jason were friendly with each other. The lies irritated Jack, though. For example, now Jack sat in his office staring at his computer monitor at the place Ianto's car was parked at nearly half past midnight. The reason Ianto had given Jack for leaving the Hub was that he was going to go sleep at his flat for the night because he was tired. So tired, apparently, that he could drive all the way out to Jason's house. _

_Jack shut off the monitor with an irritated huff. He was angry. Why was he wasting his time trying to be some faithful boyfriend when Ianto wasn't? He could have had so many bed partners by now. Jack sighed. He was overreacting. It was possible that Ianto and Jason weren't doing anything other than hanging out. Jack's PM alert pulled him out of his despair and he switched his computer monitor back on. He let out a relived sight when he saw that Ianto's car was now traveling away from Jason's house then switched to his messaging system. _

_ForeverFrenchie: Are you awake?_

_CJH: I'm always awake. _

_ForeverFrenchie: Always? I don't believe that. Even hero types have to sleep. _

_CJH: Serious question, though… ForeverFrenchie? What's up with that?_

_ForeverFrenchie: My friend set up the name. He likes to call me that, thinks he's funny. One day I'll get him back. _

_CJH: I see. Why don't you just change it?_

_ForeverFrenchie: I'm too lazy. J_

_CJH: Okay, I can understand that._

_ForeverFrenchie: So why are you still up?_

_CJH: I'm always 'up'. (Wink)_

_ForeverFrenchie: Oh, that wasn't cheesy at all. _

_CJH: I'm not cheesy! I'm charming._

_ForeverFrenchie: Okay, whatever you say… Do you want to know why I'm still up?_

_CJH: Because I'm not there to take care of it?_

_ForeverFrenchie: Yeah, I set myself up for that one. I'll have you know that I'm very good with self-satisfaction._

_CJH: I can imagine. Actually… I have. _

_ForeverFrenchie: Okay, I'm not even dignifying that with a response. _

_CJH: Probably best. Now tell me, my French friend, why are you awake past your bedtime?_

_ForeverFrenchie: My lover is a wanker. He knew our friend was going to be coming home at midnight and he initiated sex in the kitchen knowing that our friend would walk in on us. I'm a private person, I don't like others seeing me that way. He bloody knows it, too._

_CJH: I'm sorry, that's rough. My lover lied to me today. Twice. First he said he got a phone call from his sister and it was actually his ex, then he said he was going home and he actually went to his ex's house. Of course, I can't tell him I know because then he will find out that I am tracking his car again. _

_ForeverFrenchie: You track his car? What are you, MI5?_

_CJH: Wouldn't you like to know._

_ForeverFrenchie: Do you think you're the only one alive with secrets, Jack?_

_CJH: No, I'm just better at hiding mine than most._

_ForeverFrenchie: Are you?_


	25. Chapter 25

AN: I've got to say, I felt the love after the last chapter. Thanks guys. So yep… that's all I got. Oh yeah and my beta miss Taamar is amazing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood.

Rating: MA

Warnings: usual

Spoilers: Reset-something borrowed.

**_Jack_**

_Martha Jones was a sight for sore eyes. She was a reminder of the Doctor, which stirred mixed emotions in Jack. Thinking about the Doctor wasn't as heartbreaking as it used to be, but it still hurt. The way the Time Lord had called him wrong—it still haunted Jack. _

_Now Martha was inside the Pharm, and Jack was trying not to worry. Martha had proven she could handle herself. She had been the one to walk the Earth, to spread the message of the Doctor, and because of that they had been able to defeat the Master. Still, Jack didn't like putting his friends in danger._

_"I can feel you worrying from over here, Jack," Ianto muttered from his small computer in the corner of Jack's office._

_Jack looked up. "You can't feel someone's worry."_

_"Jack, I can feel every emotion you have." Ianto insisted, typing vigorously._

_"She'll be alright." Jack sighed, trying to convince himself._

_"Sure, she has to send me a red beret."_

_Jack let out a little laugh. "Did she tell you that? Man, no one knows how to keep secrets around here, and that's an issue being as we're a secret organization."_

_Ianto stopped typing and turned to look at Jack. "You know, you're the reason when anyone in Cardiff asks about Torchwood people point to the bay." He said, raising his eyebrow._

_"How?"_

_"Oh I don't know… maybe the oversized SUV that says Torchwood all over it and has enough flashing blue lights on it to light up the London Eye?" Ianto suggested._

_"How would that lead them to the bay?"_

_Ianto sighed. "It always heads toward the bay."_

_Jack thought it over for a moment then nodded in agreement. "I thought you liked the SUV."_

_"Oh, I love the SUV. More than you do, apparently, given the way you're always abusing it." _

_Jack grinned. "It likes it."_

_Ianto sighed and turned back toward his computer. "Always comes back to sex with you doesn't it?"_

_"Yes." Jack answered truthfully. "You wanna play?"_

_"What?"_

_"You come sit behind this desk and act like you're my boss and then take advantage of me."_

_Ianto looked back at Jack and raised an eyebrow. "Everyone is here."_

_"Then how about you get under my desk and give me a blow job?"_

_Ianto looked out the window of Jack's office. No one was out there except for Tosh, who was typing away at her computer. She'd never notice, unless…_

_Ianto got up and walked to the door "Tosh, do you need a coffee refill?"_

_"No," she shouted back with irritation at the interruption._

_Ianto closed the door and slowly took off his jacket before draping it over the chair in front of Jack's desk. "Scoot back!"_

_Jack scooted his chair back and Ianto knelt in front of him. He looked up at Jack, his blue eyes shining like diamonds. "Are you picturing me with the red beret?" Ianto asked._

_Jack ran a hand though Ianto's dark hair. "Oh yes."_

_Ianto smirked and undid Jack's trousers before quickly pulling out Jack's need. He bent forward and teased Jack with his tongue._

_"Please don't tease me, Yan, I can't take it." Jack begged. _

_Jack let his head fall back onto his chair when Ianto finally took him into his mouth and set a quick and amazing pace. Jack was sure Ianto was getting better at giving head each time. Jack twisted his fingers in his Welshman's hair and let out a moan. _

_One of Ianto's hands traveled slowly up Jack's chest. Jack gripped the hand with his own. _

_"You're so amazing," Jack moaned. "So fucking amazing." He gasped as his release shot through him and Ianto swallowed it down._

_"Feel better?" Ianto asked when Jack looked down to see the Welshman licking the cum from his lips. _

_"Yeah. I do. Switch me places and I'll return the favor, but how about you pretend you're my boss and demand it of me." _

_Ianto sighed playfully. "You're incorrigible." _

_TW—TW—TW_

_"Do you remember what happened the last time?" Ianto demanded as he stormed into Jack's office. Owen had died, and Jack hadn't been able to let it be. He had gone to Faith, the ageless tarot reader who had read Jack's cards for him when he first arrived in Cardiff. He had risked being mauled by nearly fifty weevils to get another 'risen mitten', all for Owen. Well, that's what Jack tried to tell himself. He tried to convince himself it was a selfless act, but it wasn't, and deep down he knew it. He didn't want to lose another friend, especially not when Jack knew it was all his fault. Now Owen was back. But for how long, no one knew. _

_"Of course I do! Gwen nearly died, how could I forget? But this is different, I couldn't just let him go!"_

_"What the fuck, Jack? You think you have the right to make these decisions for everyone? You think you can keep Owen alive with that stupid glove? You can't! He's still dead, he's just up and walking around! Miserable."_

_Jack stared at Ianto for a moment. The man was angry clearly upset with Jack for his lack of leadership skills in this situation. Who was Jack trying to fool? He didn't feel like he really had leadership skills. Why did these people work for him and trust him? Jack closed his eyes and felt tears burning behind his lids hating himself more than he ever had. His face crumpled as he sobbed. "I didn't want to lose another friend… It's so hard, Ianto."_

_When Jack opened his eyes Ianto's arms were wrapped around him. "I know, Jack. I know."_

**Iden Miller**

Ianto stood next to Owen's body in a dark room in Jason's basement and held his hand. He looked at the glow in the dark dial on his wristwatch and watched the second hand move along. He wondered how long it would take for the psychic link to break, and for Owen to wake. Then he wondered how long it would take for him to go back to Jack.

Owen breathed to life suddenly and Ianto himself could practically feel death around him. How was that possible; did death realize what was about to happen?

"He shot me! He shot me!" Owen yelled. Ianto stayed quiet but gripped his friend's hand he could feel the shadowy figure in the room with them. He wasn't sure if he was holding Owen's hand to comfort Owen or himself.

"Fuck… am I dead?" Owen's hand gripped back. Ianto wanted to comfort him, to tell him it was okay but he remained quiet, both out of fear and necessity. Owen attempted to move but Ianto had secured him to the table. "I didn't tell her," Owen sobbed. He laid still after that shifting every so often. Ianto continued to hold his hand as tears of his own fell down his cheeks finding for the first time since he was sixteen that he was afraid of death.

"Who's holding my hand?" Owen asked. "What's that?" the doctor jumped when the shadowy presence in the room moved around once more.

Ianto remained quiet but shifted closer to Owen.

"Will it be dark like this forever?"

Then something happened that shook Ianto to his core and made him fall to his knees, trembling. Jack's voice called Owen back to him and then like that Owen's body went limp again and the shadowy figure left with him.

TW—TW—TW

"How did it go?" Adrian asked when Ianto walked into the kitchen.

"Okay I guess. I don't think me holding his hand helped him much." Ianto responded, not about to tell anyone about Death being in the basement.

"It's the thought that counts," Adrian assured him.

Ianto hadn't been able to meet Adrian's eyes since the Frenchman had admitted he was having coffee dates with Jack. He was envious. Not because Adrian and Jack had kissed; Ianto had seen many people kiss Jack, it was like the equivalent of a handshake for that man. No he was jealous simply because Adrian got to see Jack and he didn't.

"Yeah, listen, I'm gonna head to bed. I've given Tammy the day off tomorrow, so I'll be spending the day with Ruby."

"Iden… I can stop seeing him, if that will make you happier."

"No. I'm fine with it. Really, it's okay."

"It doesn't seem like it's 'okay'." Adrian insisted, distressed. "You're my best friend. I literally need you! I'm not going to sleep with him, you know. I just like having someone outside the two of you to talk to. Please don't be mad at me."

Ianto took a step toward his best friend and very slowly he brought a hand to the man's cheek. He hadn't touched Adrian since their fight, and he wasn't sure if his touching rights had been revoked or not. "You're my best friend, as well. I'm not mad at you."

Adrian brought his hand up to Ianto's to keep it there. "How are you sleeping?"

"Fine," Ianto lied. Truth was, he hadn't had a good night's sleep in a very long time. Probably since before losing Aria, but now it was even worse. Since his fight with Adrian he hadn't sleep more than two hours a night.

"How about you stay with Jason and me tonight?"

"Adrian, I'm not a child. I can sleep alone just fine."

Adrian shook his head. "You go up there and I'll be there in a moment."

"Is that an order?" Ianto smiled.

"Yes."

Ianto nodded and kissed Adrian's cheek. Feeling his heart break a bit when the Frenchman flinched. It took a lot to build up trust but not a lot to break it. "Okay." He agreed before leaving the kitchen and heading up the stairs to the second floor. He didn't bother knocking on Jason's door he just went in. Jason was sitting on the bed reading. When Ianto closed the door Jason looked up, his face impassive.

"Adrian has insisted I sleep here tonight."

"No..." Jason replied.

Ianto felt the sting of rejection run through him. "Why?"

"This is Adrian's bed. Adrian and I sleep in this bed, I fuck no one else on it."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "I meant to actually sleep, and Adrian will be sleeping here as well."

"Oh… well then, the more the merrier." Jason grinned putting his book down. He then looked at Ianto intently. "Yan, if you need a break no one would blame you."

Ianto shook his head feeling tears prick his eyes. He knew Jason was right. No one would blame him for throwing in the towel, no one but himself. "I don't…" he choked out.

Jason patted the center of the bed and nodded. "Then let me take care of you for a bit. For the next six hours or so you're my charge and nothing more."

"Fine," Ianto sighed. He stripped down to his undershirt and pants and climbed into the bed to cuddle up next to Jason.

"You ever think that life would be a lot easier if you and Adrian would just do it already?" Jason asked.

"Jace, that's never going to happen." Ianto responded.

"I know, just saying."

Ianto let out a chuckle before breathing in Jason's scent and letting sleep overtake him.

TW—TW—TW

"Minister," Tammy's voice broke into Ianto's sleep. Ianto opened his eyes and looked up at her. She looked uncomfortable, and her cheeks were slightly pink. He realized that Adrian's hand was on his crotch. Ianto grinned.

"It's not what it looks like." Ianto insisted, moving Adrian's hand.

"Minister, Joy Parker has been arrested, and Bethan's been taken."

"What?" Ianto said shooting up in the bed.

"Joy used her one phone call to call Sarah. The police are holding her on kidnapping charges. Bethan has been returned to her parents. Kicking and screaming, according to Joy."

Ianto pushed at Jason. "Wake up," he said franticly.

"Why?"

"Bethan's been taken. I've got to go to the U.S. immediately, and I need you to drive me to the airport." Ianto snapped, trying unsuccessfully to stay calm. Bethan wasn't in danger. No need to panic, yet.

TW—TW—TW

"I always thought Bethan was Gwen's," Ianto said, staring out the window as Jason and he raced toward the airport.

"Who?" Jason asked.

Ianto looked toward Jason in disbelief. "The girl you fucked… the reason Little Ianto left you."

"You're going to need to be more specific."

Ianto let out a ragged sigh and leaned against the passenger seat. "You're impossible."

"I'm not."

"Are too."

"Knock it off, you two." Adrian scowled at them from the backseat. Jason and Ianto zipped it. "Iden, why did you think she was Gwen's?" Adrian asked after a few moments of silence.

"The freckles, the dark hair, the gap in her teeth, the fact that she looked Welsh…"

"How does a person look Welsh?" Jason laughed.

"It's a secret…" Ianto deadpanned.

"A secret?" Jason said with narrowed eyes.

"Fuck Jace, I don't know! I'm just stressed out right now. My daughter is with complete strangers! What if they take her to a doctor? What happens when the doctor goes to draw blood and her skin heals around the needle? She could already be on her way to Area 51 or worse… to UNIT!"

"Alright, I got it! I love her too, and I'm fucking scared!"

Ianto looked out the window and tried to keep in the tears that were threatening to fall.

"I've found the parents online." Adrian said from the back. "Molly and William Price. Their daughter's name was… well, is Mary Elizabeth Price. Age 5, abducted from her bedroom about five months ago. However the police had her father in custody… they were charging him with murder because they found… " He stopped. "You know, it's not important right now."

"Oh god… Her biological father murdered her." Ianto sobbed, unable to hold it in any longer. "He murdered her and she's back in his house now."

He leaned against the window and let the tears fall. He was so far away from Bethan, and all he wanted was to hold her in his arms.

TW—TW—TW

Bethan was being held in a home on a small suburban street in Danvers, Massachusetts just a few blocks away from Adrian's old house. Ianto sat in the passenger seat of their rental car and straightened his tie. He and Adrian were dressed sharply about to play the part a high-class lawyer and his intern wanting to take on the city of Danvers for wrongly accusing Mr. Price of murder.

As they turned down the street Ianto felt his heart sink into his stomach. There were several fire trucks lining the street, and the home, the one that Bethan was in, was engulfed in flames.

Ianto was out of the car and running down the street before Adrian had even parked properly. He dodged three firefighters before he was taken down. All he could hear was the sirens, and all he could think was that he had just lost someone else.

Then he saw her walking out of the house. A stuffed bear clutched in her hands. Both she and the bear had soot on them. "I'm a doctor," Ianto lied, and the two men holding him let go. He ran to his daughter pushing yet another fireman out of his way. He pulled her into his arms and held her tight.

"I killed the fucker," she sobbed. "I remember now… what happened in my first life."

The rest of the day was a blur. Raina Connors, the Seeker of the Salem Rift, was a social worker and was able to get Bethan out of police custody. The debacle was all over the local news but thankfully (or sadly) a big storm had devastated Cuba, and that's all the National news was focused on. Ianto wanted Bethan out of America, and it took him less than a week to arrange and accomplish that goal.

"My name is Mary." Bethan said as she and Ianto drove toward the airport. He'd be escorting her to the gate, and Jason would meet her at the airport in Cardiff, and she'd be home safe.

"Yeah."

"I kept changing my name to see if I'd figure it out. You know, I thought that if I, maybe, picked the right one it would jog my memory and then I would know… I wish I didn't know."

Ianto held in his tears until he saw Bethan's plane take off, then wept unashamedly. He was so relieved that she was safe, but the new memories she would now have to live with made his heart ache for her.

His next order of business was to get Joy out of jail, which proved to be a harder task. Joy was in Florida. where remnants of the Cuban storm were cutting power lines and reception. Finally, he did manage to get her freed. He sent her to the UK as well.

TW—TW—TW

"These are the real ones. The ones working beside you are the fakes." Ianto told his younger self. The young Welshman was standing beside the bodies of Tosh and Owen in Jason's basement.

Little Ianto turned toward Ianto anger clear in his eyes. "What have you done?" Little Ianto demanded, "Do you think you're God? That you can just control who lives and dies?"

"They deserve a chance at normal."

Little Ianto let out a ragged sigh. "I can't believe this." He walked over to Tosh's body and held her hand. "How is she going to go?"

"It doesn't matter how, when she does she'll wake up safely here."

"And Owen? He's already dead, how will it work for him?"

"When he finally goes he will wake up here as well. I had to do this, Ianto. I have to save them, and this is the only way."

Ianto felt Jason and Adrian behind him, and the three of them lined up calmly against the wall. Ianto was trying to prepare for the punch he knew was coming. Surely it wouldn't be that bad, and he kind of felt like he needed it. The hard part would be not to flinch.

"And why couldn't I be told!" Little Ianto yelled. "Why did I have to find out like this!" he gestured to his friends.

"It was a test of your resourcefulness." Ianto answered calmly, taking a step away from the wall so that Little Ianto could hit him easily. "And your trust."

Little Ianto punched Ianto in the face. "How's that for resourcefulness!" He shouted before looking up at Jason and running from the room with Jason hot on his heels.

"Is this how you get relocated?" Adrian asked, seeming to be only half joking.

"No." Ianto replied, trying to ignore the sound of his younger self's screams as he rubbed his chin. "Shit, Ow. I didn't realize how hard I could hit."

Jason was back in the room within two minutes. "What the fuck is his fucking problem?" Jason snarled. "It's like everything I've ever taught him goes in one ear and out the other! Fucking wanker."

"Jason!" Adrian snapped.

Jason looked at his lover. "What?"

"Do you really think you should be yelling about this here? Iden and Ianto are the same person!"

Ianto's guardian glared at him. "You're a fucking wanker for hitting the minister!"

Ianto rolled his eyes and left the room. "Go to hell, Jason!" he called as he left.

**_Jack_**

_Ianto was at Jason's again, and had been there for over an hour. Jack knew he was being a bit obsessive about Ianto's whereabouts, but he couldn't help it. Finally he gave up and decided to call him. _

_"Ianto Jones," Ianto answered on the other end of the call. Jack thought he sounded a bit off._

_"Are you okay, Ianto? You never came back from lunch. It's considered good form to let your boss know when you leave." Jack said trying to keep his voice light and trying not to blurt 'Why the fuck are you at Jason's!'_

_"I needed a personal day, sir. I should have called." Ianto replied. _

_A personal day? What the fuck did that mean? Any personal days Ianto took should be spent with Jack!_

_"That's okay," Jack lied, because while it wasn't okay he knew it should have been. "It's your first offense, I'll go easy on you," Jack continued, hoping his voice sounded like he was teasing. _

_"Thank you, sir." Ianto answered despondently._

_"Oh, I got a package from Martha Jones." Jack chimed, trying to change the subject to something light hearted. _

_"Is it a red cap?"_

_"Yep."_

_"I sense my punishment will be to wear it?"_

_"Wouldn't call that a punishment. No, for making me worry today you'll be dancing with me at Gwen's wedding."_

_"I don't dance."_

_"Lies."_

_Jack heard a loud clanking sound on the other end of the line._

_"I have to go, sir. I'll see you later?" Ianto said in a rushed voice. _

_"Of course." Jack replied before the call was ended abruptly. "Please tell me what's going on with you Ianto," Jack said to the dead line. _


End file.
